A Promise is A Promise
by StardustSage
Summary: A promise can mean a lot of things. How can all the promises hold together when things come undone? Its not what you think, I promise you that! .:ZADR:.
1. Chapter 1

**A Promise is a Promise**

There was only one star nearby to light the spaceships path. It cruised silently along, reflections of the cosmos passing across its shiny metal. They looked like little pieces of shining dust, floating by. The star they were near burned white hot, although the blackness surrounding it was still as cold as death. It was silent as the ship wandered past.

Well _duh_ it was silent, it was space.

Inside the ship there wasn't much talking, except for the hum of a few machines. It was filled with passengers, all waiting intently for something to happen. The think silence was broken by a small Vortion scurrying up to the large chair that sat in the middle of it all.

"My leader?"

"Yes?" replied a female voice in a tone that could freeze a sun.

"We're ready."

A malicious grin spread across her face. She cackled to herself for a few seconds, then turned to a team sitting at a giant console. "Two degrees to the left; accelerate to top speed." A revving sound could be heard for a few seconds before the ship suddenly jumped to life and lurched forward. This sent the small Vortion flying, and she laughed at his misfortune. She faced forward once more, watching the stars and planets fly by at insane speeds. 'Perfect,' she thought, a smile that was anything but pleasant on her face.

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The sun was up, and children were walking to skool. There were people driving to work, getting their morning coffee, and eating waffles for breakfast. It was a normal day on earth.

At least, as normal as any day could be for a paranormal investigator with an alien menace posing as a kid with a skin condition.

"Hey Zim, what's your plan for world domination today?!" called Dib from the sidewalk opposite to where Zim was walking. Even though Zim usually gave some sort of witty insult, he sometimes revealed his plans to the human in order to gloat about their greatness. Dib had therefore made it a habit to shout this at the alien everyday as they walked to Skool.

The Irk, who had been humming a battle tune as he marched down the street, stopped as soon as he heard this. He cocked a nonexistent eyebrow at Dib and opened his mouth to loudly mock him. However, after a few seconds, nothing came. He stood there with him mouth agape for a little while, then simply let the breath he had been going to use for an insult escape as a tired sigh. He began to walk away, leaving a very confused Dib staring at the spot where he had been standing.

Dib blinked. That hadn't been the reaction he had expected. Why wasn't Zim ranting or screaming or... anything else Zim normally did? He looked up and down the street for cars, then ran across to catch up with Zim. He soon was along side him and walked at Zim's unusually slow pace to walk beside him. "A sigh isn't an answer," he said.

Zim let out an aggravated noise. "Why don't you take your enormous pickle-filled head and go be crazy somewhere else?" He asked, sounding thoroughly annoyed.

"I don't like pickles," replied Dib, once again confounded by the alien's strange insults.

"LAIR!!" screeched Zim, stopping and pointing animatedly at Dib before resuming his walk.

For a minute Dib looked annoyed, but his expression quickly turned to one of relief. He chuckled to himself quietly, but Zim still overheard, causing him to glance suspiciously at the boy. "What's so funny, Dib-stink?" he inquired.

"Oh, nothing," he replied, "I just thought for a minute that you didn't have a plan or something."

Zim quickly averted his eyes and bowed his head.

Dib stared at Zim in shock, his jaw nearly dropping to the ground. _'Zim without a plan to destroy the Earth? Is this some kind of joke? Some kind of convoluted plot to get me to drop my guard? Is something wrong?'_ Dib wondered to himself. Outwardly he merely asked, "You don't have a plan today?" He said it with an incredulous tone in his voice, but Zim noticed that there was something else in Dib's voice. Something the Irk couldn't quite place. And for some reason this really ticked him off.

"It's none of your business anyway _Huuu-man_, but if you really must know Gir kept me from thinking all night with some _huuuman_ toy with arrows on a rug and songs that sound like they're sung by hamsters!" Zim explained in a disgruntled shout. He crossed his arms and adopted a face of pure loathing.

"You mean that Dance Dance somethin' or other game that everyone's obsessed with now?" questioned Dib. He then continued without waiting for a response, "I know what you mean. It gets really annoying after a while. I don't get why everyone says it's so fun, you just stomp your feet to music. And the music is all..." he searched for the right word, "...sickeningly cheerful." A look of disgust came upon his face. He remembered when he and Gaz were at the arcade and he had tried the game. Two minutes of squeaky Japanese school-girls and trying to stomp on those strange arrow things had been enough for him.

Zim nodded at Dibs comments. It was nice to have intelligent conversation. Then he deadpanned. His eyes were as wide as dinner plates. Dib turned with a questioning look to the alien. "Did we just... agree on something?" asked Zim, a very disturbed look on his face. Dib's eyes immediately snapped open. They stared at each other for a few seconds, an awkward silence floating between them.

"FILTHY HUMAN STINK BEAST!!!" screeched Zim, pointing at him with all his might.

"UGLY GREEN SPACE BOY!!!" replied Dib, pointing just as hard.

They stood there pointing at each other and staring for a few seconds. Then Dib turned around and began jogging away, presumably to catch up with Gaz. That was probably the most frightening thing that had ever happened to either of them. Zim watched Dib run away, a chill running up his spine. They had _agreed_ on something. He tried to clear his head and keep walking, but that horrible fact kept coming back to bother him.

"Curse you Dib!" he said, his fists curling tightly above his head, one of his standard shouting poses. But even as he said it, he realized there was no real sting in his words. He didn't even know why he was cursing the boy. It wasn't like he had done anything to annoy the Irk. Zim contemplated this for a bit, but soon just shrugged his shoulders. He didn't need a reason to hate the Dib.

He soon arrived at Skool to find the halls nearly empty. Most students had gone to class already. Zim marched off to homeroom. Upon entering, he saw that Dib wasn't in his seat. Neither were a few of the other boys in his class. This had him somewhat concerned, though if you even dared suggest it he would have ripped your arms off.

"Zim," spat an agitated Mrs. Bitters, "you're late."

The small green boy went rigid when he heard the voice the tall shadow hovering over him. She was one of the few things that scared Zim on this filthy mud-ball planet. "Erm... I had to feed my lawn gnomes. Yes," mumbled Zim, nervously scratching the back of his neck. He coughed, hoping that would suffice.

The teacher's eyes narrowed at this. However, she soon glided back to the front of the room, warning, "Don't let it happen again, or I'll have to transfer you to the underground classroom."

Zim let out a sigh of relief. He was off the hook for now. He quickly hopped into his seat and turned his attention to the empty desk on the other side of the room. Where was the Dib-human? He never missed class. Perhaps he had gotten his enormous greasy head stuck in a doorframe or something. This thought made Zim cackle aloud. "Stupid Dib..." he murmured to himself, very amused by the thought of that disgusting head caught in a door. Still, that didn't explain why some of the others were missing. Perhaps some sort of conspiracy against the alien? But no, Dib was the only one who paid any mind to Zim. He stared at the empty desk intently, as if expecting him to pop out of it any second.

After a few minutes he couldn't take it anymore. He would look for the human on his own. Curiosity had a way of getting the best of the Irken. He raised a gloved hand. "Yes, Zim?" asked Mrs. Bitters, clearly annoyed at having to stop while in mid-lecture.

"Zim feels ill and needs to go to the nurse. I am ZIM!!!" He screeched, jumping up on his chair and throwing his hands up into the air. His arms flopped back to his sides and he looked expectantly at Mrs. Bitters.

"You can be sick after class, now sit down," she barked.

Zim blinked once, then, instead of obliging, pointed out the windows, screaming, "WHAT IS THAT HORRIBLE CREATURE!?!?" Everyone immediately rushed to the window in a desperate attempt to see what was going on. Mrs. Bitters began shouting over the chaos for the students to get back in their seats. Zim quietly slipped out the door. Humans. So easily distracted. His chuckles echoed in the empty hallway as he began his search for the silly Dib.


	2. Chapter 2

**A Promise is a Promise Chapter Two**

Zim marched down the empty hall, his footsteps on the cold tile the only audible sound. The halls were completely devoid of students. Zim was thankful for that- getting caught without a hall pass was basically a death sentence. At the same time though, he thought it a little strange. There were usually a few stragglers left over after the bell rang. The intense quiet was unsettling to the Irk. Then he his sensitive antennae picked up a muffled noise coming from down the hall.

He walked carefully towards the source of the sound, which was getting louder every passing second. He stopped in front of the men's room door. He simply stared at it for a minute, not sure if he really wanted to know what was going on or not. But eventually curiosity got the better of him, and Zim stepped inside.

At first, he could only see a small crowd in the corner of the filthy restroom. Walking into the outer fringe of the group, he saw one of their classmates, Torque Smacky. He was laughing at something. Zim strained to see, getting on his tip-toes. Then he saw the raven haired boy being held up by the collar of his trench coat, struggling with all his might. He had found what he was looking for, but not what he had expected at all.

"Where's your ghosts, Dib?" he mocked before dealing Dib a hard blow to the stomach. He was in pain, it could be seen it on his face, but he didn't make a sound. That would only encourage them. Besides, he had endured worse from Zim. The entire crowd laughed. Dib didn't even bother to look up from the floor. "Where are your aliens now?" He continued, throwing another hard punch. This time Dib whimpered, not able to conceal his pain anymore. Torque grinned cruelly; he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

Zim had half a mind to scream, 'RIGHT HERE!' at Torque's last line. Sure, Irkens fought all the time. Revenge wasn't all that strange among invaders. But this was something else completely. An entire crowd of humans against one Dib. He didn't have a chance. But another thing was getting at the Irken. Dib was _his_ to beat up on. Zim and Zim alone had the pleasure of torturing the big headed boy. His eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Let him go," he ordered in a low voice that was seeping hatred. Everyone turned, surprised. No one had noticed the green boy sneak in. A path soon formed as the crowd parted, giving Torque a clear view of the small green boy who dared to interrupt the beating. Dib took no notice; he was too busy blocking out the pain.

"Get your filthy hand meats off my Dib," he demanded again. He took a step forward, fists clenching. Being ignored didn't sit well with the Irk.

Torque snickered, "Your Dib?" before kicking the mass of black cloth in defiance. It emitted a barely audible cry and tried to make itself as small as possible. Dib had been teased, but never anything like this. He was trying his hardest not to let it get to him, but that kick to his already bruised stomach hurt. Zim never did anything like this to him. Stabbed at him, shot at him, yeah, but he usually missed anyways, and when he did hit his target it usually turned out the gun was defective or the knife was a plastic piece of junk or something ridiculous like that. Not that he didn't try. Right?

Zim's eye twitched as Dib received a kick. The fact that he was now mocking both Dib _and_ him didn't help his quickly rising temper. "Yes, my Dib. His enormous head is mine to destroy," snarled Zim, throwing his arm out to the side dramatically. "So let him go," he said, glaring daggers at a clearly unimpressed Torque.

A chuckle echoed through the room. "Or what?" he asked smugly, obviously thinking the boy a small threat. He kicked Dib a second time, a sick smirk on his face. Dib cried out, tears forming at the corners of his eyes. He had no idea what Torque was saying, or who he was talking to; it was apparent it wasn't him anymore. Pain blurred his senses, making trying to figure out who was behind him impossible.

As soon as Dib cried out, Zim lost it. Suddenly, spider legs burst from his pack, lifting him off the ground, and in the same fluid motion, they began rushing forward, bringing Zim with them. Torque's eyes shot open as the green boy charged at him. He released his hold on Dib's collar, but stood rooted to the spot in shock. Zim kept coming. He pulled his fist back as he rushed towards the boy, entire body tense. At the last possible second the fist, with all the force of the sprint behind it, came forward to hit Torque square in the face.

On impact, time seemed to pause. Everything was frozen, the moment etching itself into the small crowd. Zim's face was contorted in fury, and his tightly balled fist connecting with Torques head wouldn't soon be forgotten. Torques expression couldn't have been more shocked. (How often do green kids sprout mechanical legs at your Skool?) The crowd mirrored his surprise, and had reflexively moved back. Nobody had expected this to happen, not even Zim. Dib had landed on his back and was now staring up, trying to see what had caused his sudden release.

Then, as suddenly as it had stopped, time began again, sending Torque flying into a wall. A loud 'crack' sounded when he hit; pieces of broken tile coming off the impact crater. Zim retracted the mechanical legs, dropping to the ground at exactly the same time Torque hit the floor, face down, unconscious. A smile, dark smile crept across his face. He replied maliciously, "Or that."

After a short pause, he looked down at the heap of black at his feet. Dib's eyes had snapped open at being dropped. He was sitting, trying to prop himself up with one elbow while clutching his severely bruised stomach with the other. Zim bit his lip and looked down at him for a second. Dib seemed to sense a new presence hovering over him. His eyes slowly turned to the alien hovering over him. When he saw Zim, his eyes widened even more, if that was possible. _'Oh great,'_ he thought, _'now Zim gets to beat me up.'_ He waited for the pain, staring at the aliens fake blue eyes in nervous anticipation. But what he got instead was a shock. Zim grabbed the boy around his middle, then slung him over his shoulder.

"Come, Dib-stink," he said, a bit unnecessarily, as he was carrying Dib around like a smeet. Holding him steady with one hand, he turned and strolled out the door, while Dib just stayed frozen. He got one last glance at the crowd that had once been laughing; now all too scared of Zim to move.

When they were halfway down the hall, Dib's brain finally kicked in again. He began trying to get Zim to relinquish his grip on him. It bothered him, being carried around like that. And Zim's hand was just a _little_ too low on his back. "I can walk now," he protested, turning a slightly pink. This whole thing was just... weird. Weird in too many ways to mention.

Zim ignored the boys attempt to get put down. Having Dib in this defenseless position was most amusing. Zim snickered. This only made Dib squirm more. Was Zim... enjoying this? Dib certainly hoped not. That would be creepy, even for Zim. And Zim basically wrote the book on creepy. His squirming subsided after a little bit, though. He was too tired to put up much of a fight. He went limp, resting for a moment on the Irkens shoulder.

"Zim, why did you...?" he trailed off, not caring to finish the question. Zim kept up his silent walk for a minute, but then he halted, setting Dib standing up on the floor. Dib looked around. He realized they were in front of a set of double doors; the schools main entrance. He gave Zim a questioning look.

"I suppose you'll want to go back to your filthy human home early, Dib-worm?" asked Zim, although the answer was obvious. Dib was a bit surprised; he had forgotten about the rest of the day.

"Yeah, I guess," he replied, turning his head to the tile.

Zim nodded. A large microphone popped out of his pak, and he promptly began speaking into it. "Gir? Come in," he said. A holoscreen suddenly appeared, making Dib jump. On it, Zim's robot, who was wearing what appeared to be a purple sombrero and had a rose in his mouth, was waving enthusiastically. He tried to say something, but the rose made it impossible, so he spat the now partially chewed on rose in a glass of orange juice sitting next to him. "HI!" came his cheerful response.

"Gir, I need you to come to Skool," said Zim. It almost sounded more like a request than an order, but Dib knew that that was the only way to deal with Gir. He'd had enough run-ins with that crazy robot.

"Awww, but I'm about to win! Lookie!" Gir screamed before turning the camera to the scene in front of him. A deck of cards was on a table, and there was a lamp on one side of it. In front of the lamp was a set of five cards that matched the five just barely visible in front of Gir. Minimoose hovered above all of it with a black visor on his head; Tallest knows where he had gotten it. A large amount of poker chips were also there, a few in front of Gir, but most in front of the lamp. Minimoose squeaked and floated down from his spot, picking up a card from the top of the deck. He dropped it, and it landed face up. 6 of diamonds. "GO FISH!!!" screeched Gir from behind the camera, who then jumped up on the table and started dancing, knocking over the poker chips stacked in front of the lamp in the process.

"Gir! GIR!" yelled Zim, trying to get the robots attention. The dancing suddenly stopped.

"Hi, master! What're you doin' here?" inquired the little robot innocently.

"Gir! Focus! I need you to come to Skool! You can play your game later," said Zim crossly. The robots eyes immediately filled with tears (which had always confused Dib; robots weren't supposed to cry) and Zim's expression softened. He glanced away for a moment. "Oh, okay. You can finish your game," sighed Zim, grudgingly giving in. One must learn to choose their battles.

Gir immediately perked up. "YAY! I'LL GET THE CHOCOLATE COVERED FERRETS!" screamed Gir, who then ended the transmission. A shiver went up Dib's spine. Sometimes that robot was downright scary.

"He should be here in a few minutes," said Zim, turning his attention back to Dib. Dib nodded, but then he went back to his previous question. "Zim, why did you do that back there? I mean..." he trailed off once again, not quite sure what he meant.

Zim seemed to consider for a minute, then simply stated, "Because, Dib-worm. You are mine to torment." He folded his arms and nodded, as if to agree with himself. Dib seemed a bit miffed at this response, but his sour expression soon turned into a smile.

"Thanks," he said quietly but sincerely.

Zim scoffed at him, saying, "Don't get too cuddly, Dib. I'm still trying to kill you." Dib didn't stop grinning though, and Zim's frown soon melted at the boy's lighthearted smile. He found himself smiling back in spite of himself. Something about the boys face made Zim feel... warm inside. He had never seen the boy smile that way. He drank in the warmth radiating form the boy for a moment. It felt nice...

Then he suddenly realized what he doing and snapped back to reality. He turned away, a slight bluish tint now creeping across his face. He scratched the back of his neck and chuckled nervously. "So, eh," he asked, trying to sound casual, "how are you going to explain your absence from Skool?"

Dib shrugged and made a small 'meh' noise. "I'll probably just tell people I got sick or something," he replied. "If they even notice," he added dejectedly.

"Humans have a way of not noticing things," said Zim off-handedly.

"Yeah, tell me about it," mumbled Dib, crossing his arms. A small pout set itself on his face for a minute. Then both he and Zim straitened up, startled. There it was again! They had _agreed_ on something!

Luckily, before the awkward silence could set in, a small green dog with a purple sombrero blasted through the double doors. "HIT ME BABY, ONE MORE TIME!" it sang loudly and very off key. Zim held his head where his antennae lay under his wig. "Gir!" he barked, still clutching his head.

"Yes sir!" the dog saluted, suddenly serious. Then it revered to its normal state of goofiness once again. "Did you want some chocolate ferrets too?" he asked.

"Gir, I need you to take the Dib here back to his home base," said the alien, pointing to Dib as if Gir didn't already know who that was.

"Okee Dokee!" yelled Gir, turning on his boosters. He flew towards Dib suddenly, scooping him up on his back. Dib could only clutch the black cloth ears and screech in terror as Gir rocketed down the street with him on his back. Zim chuckled as he watched them careen away. That scream never got old.

A/N: And he rode off into the... morning rush hour. XD


	3. Chapter 3

**A Promise is a Promise Chapter 3**

Zim somehow managed to get back to class without incident. Even more miraculous, he managed to slip into his seat without Mrs. Bitters gutting out his soul and feeding his corpse to the giant squid in the Teachers' Lounge. Nobody from the crowd in the bathroom seemed to be in class, either. Today must've been his lucky day.

He amazingly got through the endless drabble until the lunch bell rang. As soon as it sounded, he leaped out of is seat and sped out the door. "Ha, beat you Dib-worm!" he called. He turned around, expecting to see Dib for a moment. Of course, he wasn't there. It was almost like some sort of messed up tradition; every day he and Dib raced to see who was first out the door to lunch. It usually ended up that the two of them got jammed in the door until someone got sick of them gumming up the works and pushed one out. Zim looked down, disappointed. Funny how you miss the small things.

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Dib had gotten home in one piece; no small feat considering Gir's flight path. He hadn't escaped unscathed, though. He still had a turkey feather sticking out of his now sandy, wet hair, and he wouldn't look at avocados the same way ever again. Still, he was home, and could finally get some rest.

He half fell, half jumped off of Gir, who was now hovering on his doorstep. "We're here!" the robot screamed gleefully. Dib shot him an annoyed glance, then carefully got to his feet. He rummaged under the doormat for a moment, before holding up a key triumphantly. The morning sun reflected off it, giving it a golden tint. Gir stopped and stared, captivated by the small piece of metal. "Shiiiineeey..." he said in a hypnotized voice. Dib chuckled, then put the key in its slot and opened the door.

He strolled inside, followed by Gir. Dib stared at him for a minute. "Uh, Gir? Why don't you go back to Zim's base," he suggested. Gir blinked, as if he didn't quite grasp what Dib what trying to say. Then suddenly he dropped to the floor, banging his fists against the hard wood. A puddle of tears formed under his robotic head and he began a crying fit. Dib covered his ears, trying to protect them from Gir's tantrum.

Finally, he gave in. "Alright, you can stay here for a while!" he practically shouted, trying to be heard above the mechanical sobs. Gir immediately stopped and sat up, grinning madly.

"Yay! I get to make COOKIES!" he screeched. He jumped up, tongue lolling out of his mouth, and skipped happily towards the living room. He ended up running into the coffee table, and was knocked onto his back. "Hey, where's the bakey thingy?" asked Gir, staring up at the ceiling witha confused expression on his face.

Dib walked into the room where Gir was now lying. "The stove is in the kitchen," he replied, pointing out the door and down the hallway. Gir popped up and rushed to the kitchen, shoving Dib down on his way past. His eyes welled up at the push; Gir had hit his bruised stomach accidentally. He clutched his abused middle for a moment, waiting for the pain to pass. Once it did he pushed himself up to rest on his elbows. "And don't make too much of a mess!" he called. Not like Gir would listen.

Dib pondered what to do next. "I should probably get cleaned up first," he decided. He got to his feet and walked to the upstairs bathroom. He locked the door to ensure the little robot wouldn't disturb him. He ran a warm bath and filled it with bubbles. He was happy to have a chance to relax a bit. Usually he jumped in and out of the shower at breakneck speeds. This would be a nice break from the norm. He shed his clothes and climbed into the warm, bubbly water. He inhaled and giggled. It smelled like lilacs.

He sat in the soothing flowery-smelling tub for a while, simply taking it all in. He sighed contently. His mind began wandering to earlier that day. Zim saving him. He would never have expected that. And Zim's explanation. But... Dib knew that wasn't all. It couldn't be. Right? He remembered being carried around on Zim's shoulder. It _was_ kinda nice- Wait! What was he thinking?! Zim was hell-bent on destroying the earth! They were mortal enemies! Zim hadn't been planning anything today, though...

Suddenly a loud explosion shook the boy from his thoughts. Water and bubbles sloshed onto the floor as the house shook. Dib clutched the sides of the white porcelain bathtub, waiting for the tremors to stop. He clamored out, trying not to slip on the wet floor. He wrapped the nearest towel around his waist and yanked open the door, cursing under his breath at having to unlock it first. He dashed down the stairs, trying to hold the towel in place. He turned sharply in front of the kitchen door, where splatters of goo signaled the explosion had come from, and stared into the now green room.

Then he saw a blob of goo skitter across the floor. "Gir, what did you do?!" he screamed. The blob stopped and turned towards the boy in a towel. He giggled nervously, then noticed that Dib wasn't in his usual attire.

"Where's your skin?" inquired the robot innocently, turquoise eyes shining through the fluorescent lime.

Dib blushed slightly at this comment. Then he gave Gir a flat look, saying "Clean this up." When no response came, he added, "That's an order." He had no idea if Gir would actually listen to him, but he was hoping he wouldn't be stuck cleaning up this disaster.

Gir's eyes turned red for a moment, along with the glowing panels on his body. "Yes sir!" he saluted. Then he went back to his normal insane self. "HEAD CHEESE TIME!" He screeched, one eye zooming out for no particular reason. A hose emerged from the top of his head began sucking up the slop on the floor. A sack on his back soon expanded to hold the mess. The loud whir of the machinery caused Dib to cover his ears reflexively. He walked out of the room, partially wanting to get away from the noise, partially wanting to get away from the insane robot. Going back up the stairway, he decided not to get back in the tub. He was already clean enough, and someone had to make sure that Gir didn't try anymore baking 'experiments'.

He went into his room and shut the blinds so he could get dressed in peace. He rummaged through his drawers for a bit, deciding on a shirt that he had gotten for his birthday. It was his trademark dark blue shirt with a face on it, but instead of that apathetic gray face, this one had a forest green face with sharp teeth in an enthusiastic yet slightly creepy smile. He found a pair of black jeans, the same type he always wore. He decided to wear a pair of fuzzy alien slippers, the same forest green as the face on his shirt. He backtracked to the bathroom where his trench coat was, in a heap with the rest of his clothes. However, when he picked it up he groaned. It was soaked. The rest of his clothes were in the same condition from all the bathwater that had spilled. He drained the tub, then dropped the dripping ball of clothes down the laundry chute. He would have to live without it for now.

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Zim shuffled to the cafeteria. He looked at the food they were serving. He was about to join the line, but then he stopped. Nobody would notice him not eating for a day, right? He usually only ate to disprove Dib's rantings about him not being human. Besides, he had seen some humans skip meals. Mostly the girls, though.

He sat down at his normal table. He rested his chin on his hand and tapped his fingers on the plastic tabletop, making small rhythmic clacking sounds. He stared off into space for a bit, not thinking about anything in particular. Then his vision was abruptly blocked by a small black and purple mass. "What did you do to Dib this time?" asked the small girl, with an air of total indifference.

"I don't know what you're talking about," replied Zim nonchalantly. He flicked a nonexistent speck of dust off the tabletop in front of him with his free hand. He was suddenly lifted into the air by her pale hand. Fake, blue eyes widened and Zim began struggling to get free.

"I asked you a question," growled Gaz, the fire of hell in her eyes. She really couldn't care less about Dib; she just didn't take that kind of thing sitting down. Or standing up. Or at all.

Zim let out a small 'eep', but quickly regained his composure. hiding his feels was something that he had a knack for. "Well, if you must know," he choked, trying to get her to relinquish the grip on his neck, "he felt ill with illness and went back to his base." Gaz released him and he fell back into his seat.

"Pfft. Fairy-boy," she said. She was about to walk away, when the strangest urge came over the Irk.

"His injuries were serious," replied Zim defensively. He clapped his hands over his mouth. Now he was isticking up/i for the worm-baby? Perhaps Dib's crazy was infectious.

Gaz stopped and stared at him for a second. "I thought you said he was sick," she said accusingly. Zim felt a bead of sweat drip down the back of his neck. She was glaring at him hard now. Zim's mind raced, searching for a way to get himself out of this.

"I... did," he stated, trying not to look nervous. Gaz inspected him, as if looking for a reason to kill him. Her eyes settled on his face, glaring at him. She leaned in, as if trying to get a better look. Zim leaned back, wanting to be as far away from this scary creature as possible. False pupils were narrowed in fright. She peered into his soul for a few moments longer, then leaned back to a normal standing position.

"Whatever," she shrugged, rolling her eyes. She walked back to her table and turned on her Game Slave 3, button mashing feverously. Zim released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He slumped forwards, again resting his elbow on the table and his chin in his hand. _She's worse than a hoard of conventian sales tarantulas,'_ he reflected. Being Dib must be harder than he thought. The bell for recess rang, and Zim ran outside in an attempt to put some distance between that horrible thing and himself. He spent most of recess sitting on the monkey bars, swinging his feet, and watching cars roll past the Skool.

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Dib plopped himself down on the couch in front of the TV. He grabbed the remote and pressed 'power'. Some music channel started blasting heavy metal. Gaz had no doubt been the last on to watch TV. He pressed the volume button like a madman. When it was loud enough so that it drowned out the clean up in the kitchen, but not so loud that it would cause Dib's ears to bleed, he began the channel-surfing. Most of the things on at this time of day were soap operas, which Dib quickly skipped. His life was much more interesting than a soap opera anyways.

After a while he settled on a channel showing re-runs of Mysterious Mysteries. He sat and watched, although he had seen every episode to date. A few minutes passed and Gir came in, sitting next to Dib. "Who's the crazy guy?" asked Gir, pointing at the screen.

Dib gave him a flat look, but responded, "That's the host." Gir gave an 'ooh' and stared intently at the TV. They sat in silence once more, until Dib realized how late it must be. He looked at the clock on the end table next to him. It said '11:47'. "Oh, wow. It's time for lunch," said Dib. He hesitated a moment. He didn't want to get off the couch. It was nice and comfy. He turned to the small robot next to him. "Hey Gir, can you go into the kitchen and reheat some tacos?" he requested. "They should be in the fridge next to the Poop Soda," he added.

Gir jumped up and dashed back into the kitchen, screeching, "TACOS!!!" Dib could hear his insane giggles from the other room. About a minute later, Gir came back, a taco in each hand. He gave one to Dib before hopping back up onto the couch and devouring his whole. Dib stared at this bizarre spectacle. Another thing that Gir did that robots weren't supposed to do; eat. He bit into his and began chewing. Pretty good for leftovers. He took another bite, but this time pulled the taco out of his mouth in surprise. He had hit something hard.

He looked at his taco, trying to see what he had bitten into. He spotted something metallic and shiny. Trying to pull it out and see what it was, he finally succeeded on the fourth try. In one hand he held the taco. In the other he held a very greasy fork. He cocked an eyebrow at Gir. In the end he decided not to ask. He continued eating, hoping he wouldn't find anymore surprises.

Maybe after this he should do something else; Mysterious Mysteries was getting dull. Update Zim's file, maybe? Yeah, that sounded good. He finished his taco and wiped the crumbs from his mouth. He handed Gir the remote and got up, making his way to his room again. Gir happily snatched the remote and turned to the Angry Monkey Show, a sigh of, "I love this show" coming from the robot as he lay on his stomach, eyes glued to the TV. Dib took one last glance at the robot to make sure he wouldn't cause any more trouble, then continued up to his room. 


	4. Chapter 4

**A Promise is a Promise **

**Chapter 4**

The bell rang, snapping Zim out of his thoughtless daze. Back to class. Zim hopped off the dull metal of the monkey bars and began shuffling back to class, breathing a sigh of relief when he noticed that Gaz was already gone. He was the last one in from recess.

As Zim slunk to his seat, Mrs. Bitters continued to rant about how jellyfish would eventually become intelligent enough to rule the earth. Zim groaned and rolled his eyes. _This_ one again. He pulled a piece of paper from his pak, intending to exchange insults with Dib through notes. Of course, as soon as he did this, reality hit him once again. He stole a glance at Dib's empty chair, biting his lip. What was that human emotion again? He was... 'missing' the Dib. Not because he cared, of course. Things were just rather dull without anyone to torment. Mhm, that was it. He turned his attention back to the blank page in front of him. He began absentmindedly drawing circles on it to cure his boredom.

However he soon noticed that two of the circles looked a lot like a certain boy's pair of glasses. He sketched the rest of Dib (surprising well) on the paper. Something was off though. He tapped his chin, trying to figure out what. "Aha!" he cried, a pointed claw raising itself in a 'eureka' pose. He began drawing another Dib, this one having a _much_ bigger head. Zim cackled as he finished. Perfect. Just like everything else the Irken did.

Zim's paper soon filled with ridiculously large-headed Dibs, each more stupid looking than the last, until they began to look nothing like the person they were modeled after. Some had heads that were five times the size of the body. Some looked like mashed potatoes with arms. Some just looked horrible. Zim eventually noticed this and flipped over the paper to get a fresh start.

He began to doodle the human again. This time, however, he took great care getting every curve, every angle, every shadow just right. The new Dib was smiling, the same smile that had made Zim feel so warm earlier. He traced the lines again, wanting to get every feature just right. It was so easy to recall what Dib looked like. They had spent so much time together. Trying to kill each other, mostly, but still. When they worked together they could be quite a team. Each strand of hair, each piece of cloth, all etched into Zim's memory from months of trying to destroy them. The etching sounds of the pencil soon stopped, and Zim rested his chin in his hand, staring down at the grinning face. Zim let out a contented sigh.

And that's when it hit him that he was staring at the face of his greatest enemy.

Zim screeched and jumped back, pressing himself against the back of his chair. He was pointing at the drawing with one hand, and the other was busy curling and tightening in horror. Snatching and crumpling the paper in one swoop, he turned and tossed the wad of paper at the back of the room. It sailed over all but the back row, where it bounced off someone's forehead and onto the floor in front of them. Luckily for Zim, the person appeared to be sleeping, and a trail of saliva was escaping their mouth. Once the paper ball hit the floor, Zim stopped his screaming and resumed his position facing forward in his seat. He coughed, as if trying to cover up all the racket he had just caused. Of course, no one paid him any mind. It was just Zim, after all.

Zim was again forced to listen to Mrs. Bitters droll on. He pounded his head against the desk in front of him a few times, then let it rest there. Nothing exciting was going to happen today anyways. He closed his eyes. Nobody would notice if he took a little cat nap, right?

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Dib opened the door to his room and strolled in. He began sifting through piles of old paperwork and notes on his desk. "I really gotta clean this place up one of these days," he commented. Then he found what he was looking for. He held up a manila folder stuffed with various papers. It was brimming with knowledge; everything Dib had learned about Zim so far was in that little binder. He cracked it open and pulled out a miniature notebook. He rummaged through the mess for a pencil that wasn't worn down to a stub and began writing in his messy script.

_'Extremely possessive. Thinks he's the only one who has the right to destroy me. Strong; Able to carry me. That's pretty weird. Punched out Torque. Can rush an enemy with his spider legs.'_ He turned to Gir's page and began jotting down some more interesting tidbits. Hopefully they would be useful one day.

Dib then noticed a paper that had fallen out. He bent down and plucked it off the carpet, emitting a sore grunt as he did so. It was slightly yellowed, obviously one of the oldest files. It was rumpled and torn in a few places. Studying the page for a few seconds, he let out a small 'oh'. It was from when Zim had first arrived on Earth. It was a labeled sketch of the Irken. Most of it was merely an outline- there were still a lot of things that had remained a mystery to Dib, even after months of stalk- erm, observing. He inspected it for a little while longer and began adding in little details he had missed. His midsection was still a big blank though. '_I wonder if Irken anatomy is the same as human anatomy..._' he pondered to himself.

Then his thoughts deadpanned. Had he just asked himself what Zim looked like naked? His cheeks turned cherry red. '_It's just scientific curiosity!_' he tried to convince himself. That only made it sound worse. Besides, it didn't explain why he was blushing so much. He tucked the page away again, stammering, "I think I'll work on this later." Slippers made quite scratching noises as they moved cautiously down the oak floor. There was no reason to be acting so embarrassed- nobody besides Gir was in the house right now. Besides, it's not like they could read his thoughts. Well, unless it was Gaz. That sent a shiver up his spine. His sister was downright scary sometimes.

He came to the little robot, who was still staring at the TV. Dib was downright amazed. Gir hadn't moved. This was probably the first time he had seen Gir sit still for that long. The aqua eyes were fixed in the same position they had been earlier. He plunked himself down next to Gir, trying not to move him too much. The Scary Monkey Show was still on. Dib watched silently, getting more bored by the minute. Gir however, seemed just as entranced as ever.

Dib slowly began moving his hand towards the remote. He crept up on it, inch by inch, keeping his gaze on the TV in an attempt to be inconspicuous. When he was about to grab it, however, a metal claw swatted his hand away. Dib pulled back, holding his slapped wrist and giving the robot a pout. He soon resumed watching the screen, though he cared about what was happening about as much as he cared about fish food. His mind began to wander and his eyes began to droop. A yawn escaped him, even though it was probably only a quarter after noons. He was, in all honesty, exhausted. And this show was about as interesting as drying paint. He found himself slumping over. The couch was just so comfy... He collapsed onto the cushions next to him and began to wet the fabric with his drool.

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A shrill ring snapped Zim from his sleep and he sat up, clearly not sure what exactly was going on. Fortunately for him, it also galvanized the entire student body into action. Children crawled out windows, sprinted down hallways and stairwells, kicked down doors like wild hyenas; all trying to escape the legal prison known as 'school'. Zim blinked, now remembering why he was asleep at his desk. He quickly gathered his things, stuffed them in his Pak, and hopped out of his seat. Despite his swift march out the door, he was the last one to leave class.

"And have a horrible day!" called Mrs. Bitters menacingly behind him. Zim audibly gulped and picked up the pace- he was practically running anyways. He was soon standing on the front steps, surveying everything with false steely eyes. He was looking for... something familiar. The only thing he saw was the Dib-sister. He shuddered. No, definitely going to avoid that scary girl at all costs. He turned towards the other side of the street.

And fell over in fear.

"Dib-sister! How did you-?" he cut off, looking at the spot where she had just been, now empty. He looked back at Gaz, back at the empty spot, back at Gaz again. His pupils were constricted in terror. Gloved hands were propping him up, but he had managed to scrape his wrists when he landed. The raw flesh stung, but that was the least of Zim's concerns right now.

"Dib's gone. I need _someone_ to walk me home," stated the purple haired demon girl flatly, not sounding the least bit happy about it. She glared at Zim, who was still gaping at her in shock. He blinked, realizing what she was asking of him.

"Yes," he said, managing to regain composure. "Yes," he repeated sounding a bit more sure of himself. Then his ego reinstated itself as ruler, and Zim gave a hearty chuckle. "Yes, Zim would be willing to escort the little human home! You should honored to have one so mighty as ZIM in your presence! Why, many would beg for a chance to-" he was suddenly cut off by a small fist to his face.

"Shut up. I'm trying to play my game," ordered Gaz. Zim held a hand to his tender jaw as Gaz began to shuffle away, totally engrossed in her GS3. Zim blinked and gave a wary glance towards the girl. He began following behind her, wondering to himself why exactly she needed someone to walk with her. Anyone stupid enough to mess with Gaz deserved whatever horrible fate she poured upon them. Unless... maybe it wasn't for Gaz's safety so much as everyone else's. He massaged his jaw gingerly. It wasn't hurt too badly, but it would probably be sore for a little while. Then his attention turned to the fresh scrapes on his wrists and palms. Slowly he began pulling off a glove to inspect the damage. However, the stinging sensation worsened as he approached the wound. He inhaled sharply as another cruel twang shot through the raw flesh. He pulled his glove back down. He'd fix that later.

_A/N: Scientific curiosity my foot... Dib you bad, bad, little boy. XD_


	5. Chapter 5

**A Promise is A Promise Chapter 5**

Zim and Gaz soon arrived at the unnaturally metallic home, strolling past the visible electric fence. Zim pondered for a moment why he hadn't tried to sneak in here before. It looked easy enough... until Gaz put her hand up to a gel scanner at the front door and entered a very long and complicated pin number. Zim pouted for a second at another brilliant plan ruined, then decided to follow her in. He wanted to see if the Dib was still in the same sorry state he had been earlier. He casually slunk in through the open door behind Gaz, who immediately walked to the kitchen to get a poop cola. He surveyed the environment around him for a moment. Everything looked relatively normal, minus the merchandise bearing a direct resemblance to Professor Membrane scattered everywhere. Zim eyed them wearily for a moment. Suppose the Dib hid cameras in them? But then, why would he need to? Zim gave a thoughtful 'Hm...' and scratched under his wig.

Ah, his wig was driving him crazy. Irken disguises were never made for comfort. He closed the door behind him, looking for any sign of something wrong, as he continued to itch his irritated antennae. He turned back and faced the hallway. He contemplated for a moment, then yanked the horrible wig off his head and tossed it to the ground. He plucked out the contacts from his eyes, too, and discarded them alongside the mop of hair at his feet. He stretched his antennae to their tallest, like a cat stretching its legs after a nap, and let out a contented sigh. Then he shook his head and proceeded with his search for the Dib-worm.

It didn't take long to find him. The TV was still going, although the only one on the couch was sleeping soundly. The volume wasn't up too loud, so it was pretty quiet in the carpeted room. Zim noticed the absence of a trench coat on the Dib. And the fluffy alien slippers. That was a bit creepy. It was his stillness, however, that really gave Zim the creeps. He had never known Dib to be still; always running around, ranting, that kind of thing. Zim poked him, and Dib shifted in his sleep, slightly giggling. Not quite the response Zim wanted. So, he decided to get what he wanted.

"DIB-WORM!!!" He shouted at the top of his lungs, or whatever Irkens called them. Dib awoke with a start, nearly jumping a foot. However when he jumped he also moved over a few inches, causing him to tumble off the cushions with a gigantic 'THUD'. He was lying face down on the floor, one leg still resting on the couch, bent at an odd angle, the other flat on the floor. His arms were sprawled in front of him, and a slipper had flew up as he fell, landing right in front of him as he lifted his head to see what had caused his sudden change from sleep to the waking world. Trying to catch his breath, he stared at the Irken in front of him, who was now trying desperately not to burst with laughter.

It didn't work.

A loud, roaring, cackle rose from the small alien, who was pointing and holding his stomach as hard as he dared with his scraped wrists. His eyes were tearing up, he was laughing so hard. "You... should... see... yourself," Zim managed to blurt out between fits of laughter. The glare it got him only made him laugh harder, and he was nearly brought to his knees by the side-splitting scene in front of him. Eventually his chortling died off into a soft chuckle, and then subsided completely. He wiped away the wetness clinging to the corners of his eyes and stated, "That made my day," still grinning madly.

Dib glanced at the floor, looking a bit dispirited. "It hurt," he murmured. He moved his foot off the couch and onto the floor next to the other and drew in all his limbs, trying to get up. Zim looked a bit disconcerted at this response. Dib got up onto his hands and knees with a small bit of difficulty, and was going to try to support himself, but soon found a gloved hand outreached to him. He took it gratefully, and the two managed to work together to pull Dib up. Zim had inwardly winced when Dib grabbed his palm, still raw from the scrape. Still he didn't want to draw any attention to it, even when he felt warm liquid begin to soak through the fabric. Luckily, Dib didn't seem to notice and it didn't seep through just yet. As soon as Dib was standing he released the grip on Zim's abused hand and Zim hid it behind his back as nonchalantly as he could. No need to worry Dib. "Thanks," muttered Dib, referring to the help with getting up. He scratched the back of his neck for a minute, glancing sideways and mumbling something akin to 'even if it was your fault.' He turned back to Zim, letting his arm drop back to his side.

"So how are you, Dib-human?" inquired Zim. There was an actually tone of caring in his voice, despite his attempts to hide it, which slightly surprised the boy. Still he answered with a shrug.

"I'm okay. I would have been better if you hadn't come and scared me out of my wits. I was having a dream too," he added with a disappointed air. This aroused Zim's curiosity.

"What kind of dream?" asked Zim, antennae perking in interest.

"Something about beavers in tuxedos, I think," replied Dib. "And mustard. Lots of mustard," he added, a disturbed look coming to his face. One of Zim's lower lids twitched. After a very awkward pause, Dib continued, "But it was a good dream. Somehow. I don't usually dream things like that."

Zim cocked an eyebrow, asking, "What ido/i you usually dream about?" He knew Dib wasn't exactly well in the head- he had been in his head. Literally. And Tallest, was that place scary. So he was interested to know if his dreams were just as unwell as the rest of him. He guessed the answer was yes.

"Uh..." Dib blushed, unsure if he should really answer that question. "Well," he said carefully, "Most of the time my dreams are about..." gah, this was gonna be awkward. "You," he admitted, averting his eyes.

Zim's eyes snapped open, and he blinked a few times. Was that... flattering? Or... weird? Or some strange combination of both? Another awkward silence followed. There was no way that Zim could think to answer that, despite how hard he was desperately wracking his brain. Zim continued staring with a very creeped out face, and Dib continued observing the floor. Once, Zim tried opening his mouth, hoping something would come out, but he soon shut it, realizing that nothing would.

Luckily for the both of them, Gaz took that moment to shout, "Dib! Why are there green glowing cookies on the counter?" It was obvious that she didn't want anything less than a strait answer, and fortunately Dib senses seemed to come back to him at that moment.

"Those must be Gir's!" He called back, adding "I wouldn't eat them if I were you." However, when Gaz strolled out of the kitchen he mouth was full and there was an obvious green stain around her lips. Dib twitched, and Zim flinched, anticipating an explosion of some kind; Gir's cooking sometimes had that effect. However, she made it known that the cookies were edible by swallowing and wiping the green off her face.

"That was pretty good," said Gaz. "Tell the stupid robot I say thanks," she smirked, turning back to her game. Dib rubbed his eyes. For a second he could have sworn that Gaz's smirk was actually a smile. But no, Gaz didn't actually smile- not unless someone was in pain.

His thoughts were interrupted when Zim snapped back to reality. "My robot is here?! With YOU?!?!" He screeched, pointing a claw accusingly at the big head.

Dib gave a nervous 'heh' and put his hands up in surrender. "He begged me to stay," he defended, "and I haven't touched him. In fact, I don't even know where he is."

Zim looked as if he was about to scream some more at Dib, but just as the first shouts of 'corn-headed lair' were about to leave his throat, he stopped. "Wait," said Zim, "You mean my robot is loose in your base- and _you don't know where he is or what he's doing_?" Dib almost responded with a casual 'yes', but then the sudden realization of what that meant hit him. His jaw hung slack for a moment, pure horror overtaking his features. Gir was alone somewhere in the house. **GIR** was _alone_ somewhere in the house.

"Shit," came the simple reply. And both boys were soon tearing through the house trying to find him. Both were running as fast as they could, in a total panic. If they didn't find him soon the world would probably implode- you never knew what that robot would do or what buttons he would press. Zim didn't want to die in a horrible explosion any more than Dib did, so they both sprinted from room to room calling for Gir. After a few minutes they returned to the hallway, breathless. "I couldn't find him," gasped Dib, clutching his stomach.

"Neither did I," came the exasperated reply. They both stood there, trying to catch their breath again, both leaning against the wall behind them. Dib was propping himself up with one arm; Zim had just fallen against the wall. He wouldn't have been able to hold himself up anyways on account of his scrapes. There was a brief silence when their breathing leveled out. And in that silence, Zim could swear he heard something. One antenna perked, and he put a hand lightly against Dibs mouth. There it was again. It was a steady sound, but it had a beat to it. "Hear that?" asked Zim, removing his hand so the boy could respond. Dib closed his eyes for a minute, trying to still his breath and stop his heart from beating so hard. He listened intently for anything out of the ordinary.

"Yeah," answered Dib finally, opening his eyes. He began to look around, searching for the source for the sound. Zim joined him, antennae moving in all directions. Both eyes rested on the stairway leading up to the second floor and, more importantly, Dib's room.

"Double shit," cursed Dib under his breath before bounding up the stairs with Zim at his side. He slid to a stop at the door, and he and Zim both grabbed the doorknob. They quickly yanked the door open, ready for the worst.

"HI TUNA!" Screamed Gir, who was bouncing around on Dib's bed like a maniac. Music was blasting from the speakers on the desk, the rhythmic noise being what had attracted the two to the room in the first place. Everything appeared to be fine- nothing broken, disintegrated, or turned to fish. Dib stared for a moment, then let out an enormous sigh, and, with the exception of the hand still covering Zim's on the doorknob, collapsed on the floor.

"Thank goodness..." whispered Dib, leaning heavily against the wooden frame. With his free hand he wiped away some of the sweat that had collected on his brow.

Zim's reaction was much the same, though he didn't fall to the ground from exhaustion. He merely slouched, alarm leaving him. He noted the stinging in his hand and looked over; Dib still had his hand overlapping Zim's on the shiny round bit sticking from the door. Dib looked relieved that the world hadn't exploded, but his still hand hurt. "Now that the crisis is over, could you please relinquish your grip on my hand?" requested Zim sorely. Dib looked up in surprise- he hadn't even noticed. But he pulled his hand away to help hold him up against the pale wood. Zim retracted his hand as well, examining it for a bit before letting it hang at his side. He would need to bandage it later- blood was soaking through the black gloves. All the while, Gir continued his demented bounce. Both boys watched silently.

Zim soon found his head bobbing to the music in spite of his mood. He began to sway lightly to the beat of the music, and Dib took notice. Zim closed his eyes as he stepped, his movements soon turning into full-fledged dancing. A smile crept onto his face. This was... fun.

Dib watched Zim for a few moments. He seemed to be enjoying himself. That was weird. Dib never saw Zim as the type who liked to dance. But then, there was still a lot that was a mystery to Dib. A certain manila folder caught his eye. Dib tried to get up as inconspicuously as possible, tip-toeing to the desk. He filed it away again without Zim's noticing, hidden in the rhythmic melody pouring from the speakers. He leaned against the desk, watching contently.

He began to tap his toes. Then he found himself moving from side to side. Soon he was dancing alongside Zim. He decided to keep his eyes open, however, so he wouldn't bump into anything. Zim didn't need sight, however. He could sense better with the slick black feelers on his head anyways. And he could sense that the boy beside him was working up a sweat.

Zim's movements became even more erratic as he became even more entranced with the music. He still didn't hit anything, though he was swinging around so much it would have put a grandfather clock to shame. Dib was getting into the music, though nowhere near as much as Zim. Dib wasn't a particularly good dancer. He was just glad that nobody else could see his horrible attempt at dance. Though, with his luck, Gaz was probably recording this and going to put it up on the internet later. He glanced towards the door, still slightly ajar, and saw no one there. He relaxed a little more, and began to swing again.

Zim lost all inhibitions now, flinging himself wildly around the room. Dib was having a good time himself, and watching Zim was pretty good fun in itself. Gir was giggling insanely at the pair of them, still bouncing on the bed. Zim was having much too much fun to be healthy. He stepped off to the right, left, right left, twirl, and did the splits. He hopped back up on his nimble feet and began to once again fling from one side to the other. Dib was amazed, to say the least- since when did aliens know how to dance so well?

Zim did another wild little twirl, but this time, vertigo set in and he found himself tilted against gravity in a way that couldn't be fixed. Dib, noticing Zim's sudden loss of balance, saved the day by diving in and catching him. It was quite a surprise to be suddenly plopped into the boy's arms, and Zim was left a bit dazed. Dib laughed, music still going in the background. "Having fun?" he teased. His arms were now slick with sweat, but he didn't care. He never got to have fun.

Zim looked up at him. "Yes," he responded with a smirk. "But now Zim is tired. Bring Zim to your bed," commander the Irken. Dib chuckled, expecting no less. He picked up the small alien and set him on the bed, where he immediately let himself fall into the bundle of blankets and pillows next the alien. Both were breathing pretty hard, and both were in need of a towel. Dib looked over at the green form next to him and smiled.

And Zim did something remarkable; he smiled back.

Gaz took that moment to peak her head in. "Dinners ready, and... what are you two doing?" asked Gaz, seeing the two sweaty boys breathing heavily on top of the bed. Her voice indicated that she was _very_ creeped out by the scene in front of her. And that was a feat.

Dib peeked up at his little sister. He blinked a few times, wondering what she was getting at. Then his cheeks turned a vibrant red color and he stammered out a quick, "W-We were just dancing!" He sat up completely, sticking his legs over the side of the bed. Zim blinked at the sudden change. Dib was trying to hide his face from both of them, knowing that his embarrassment was showing through.

"What kind of dancing?" asked Gaz, bearing a clearly disturbed face. Dib blushed about twice as hard at that, and looked up, now completely desperate to prove his innocence. Zim propped himself up on his elbows, tying to see what in the world was making Dib act strangely.

"I swear, just normal dancing! Like... uh..." he was trying and failing to come up with something that would prove his innocence. "GIR!" He shouted, pointing at the small robot with all his might. "We were just dancing, right?" He clamored, hoping the robot would say something normal for once. Fat chance.

"Big head and master were swinging around like crazy, the master n' big head went on the bed, then we all had sushi!" screeched Gir, flipping over and standing on his head. Gaz's eye twitched.

"Just... come down and get soup," huffed Gaz, giving up on trying to figure them out. She shuffled out the door, mumbling under her breath. "Now!" she ordered, just as Dib was opening his mouth to protest again. He quickly clacked it shut and hopped off the bed. He turned back to Zim, uttering a 'coming?' before shuffling to the other side of the room. Zim jumped off the bed and followed after Dib, but not without grabbing hold of his robot first.

"What's her problem?" asked Zim as he strolled through the doorframe with Gir tucked under his arm.

"I dunno," answered Dib, pulling the door shut behind him, "She's just..." His voice trailed off as felt the door knob. There was something warm and sticky on it. He pulled away and examined his hand. Blue. He looked at the doorknob again. Blue. "What the hell?" he muttered under his breath. He turned to Zim, about to ask him what he thought of it, but something else caught his attention. Drops, the same cerulean color, littered the floor around Zim's feet. Dib traced them up, and found one still attached to its origins- the scraped up wrists.

Dib blinked a few times, to make sure he was seeing right. "Zim, you're bleeding," he said in mild alarm. Zim looked automatically at his hands, and saw that his injuries were worse than he had anticipated- a few drops clung nearly invisible on his black fabric, but more were scattered on the floor leaving a trail of where the Irken had been. He lifted his arms and turned his palms face up so he could inspect the now blood soaked gloves. Dib stepped up to Zim and grabbed the edge of both gloves so Zim couldn't pull away. "Let me see," he insisted, looking Zim strait in the eye.

Zim bit his lip, looking as though he wanted to disembowel the boy. "You do not order ZIM!" he shouted. But then he swallowed, looking a bit worried. "I haven't actually seen it yet," he admitted. Dib began to pull off one of the gloves, getting a pained whine in return. "Be gentle with Zim," he complained. Dib continued staring intently at the scraped green flesh waiting to meet him. Lower down the arm it turned a raw blue, and Zim began to whine more. Dib decided he might as well get it over with, and ripped the thing off in one swift motion.

Gaz, sitting downstairs, put down her spoon and gave an angry huff. They still hadn't come down. She was about to yell up the stairs for them to get their asses down here, but then she heard a yelp that sounded distinctly Zim-like. It was accompanied with a shout of "Gentle!" Her lower lid twitched. Oh, she was gonna have nightmares for weeks.


	6. Chapter 6

**A Promise is a Promise**

**Chapter 6**

"What happened?"

Zim bit his lip, partially because of the pain, partially because of his pride. What business of Dibs was it? Zim huffed, giving a steely glare towards the boy who was so carefully wrapping him up, then staring at the floor. Why was Dib doing this for him?

Dib stopped momentarily because of the heavy silence. He was trying not to aggravate Zim any further- one slap to the face had been enough. It had hurt the attacker more than it had hurt its target, though. Dib stared at the alien in front of him. Zim had been acting strange lately, there was no denying it. He gave worried look to Zim for a second, although he shouldn't have. Zim was his enemy!

...But Zim had saved him.

So that he could destroy him later!

...He was always saying he would destroy him 'later'.

Dibs thoughts conflicted for another minute before he snapped out of his trance to look at Zim again. He repeated the question, this time a little more slowly. Zim turned his head away from the pale human in front of him, refusing to make eye contact. A disturbing thought crossed Dib's mind. He immediately tried to dismiss it, but Zim wouldn't give him any other answer, so he was going to have to say it.

"Did you do this to yourself?" he asked, totally unsure what Zim's reaction would be.

Zim went for raving madman.

"WHAT?! OF COURSE ZIM WOULD NOT DO THAT TO HIMSELF!! ZIM IS NO HYU-MAN EEM-OH!! HOW DARE YOU SUGGEST SUCH A THING WITH YOUR HEAD FULL OF... GREEN BEANS!!!" screeched the moody alien. He had jumped to his feet and was now pointing his finger threateningly at Dib, who had been so startled that he was pressed against the wall, sweating bullets at Zim's nearly violent reaction. At the last insult, however, he cocked an eyebrow, and almost protested the sheer absurdity of the statement. However, Zim continued, in a slightly more sane tone, "No, it was that _horrible_ **demon** sister of yours. She did that thing where she's half a block away then you turn around and she's breathing down your neck like some horrible FUNGUS!" explained Zim as rationally as he could.

"Oh, that," sighed Dib, rubbing the back of his neck with a small 'heh', "She always does that. It still scares the crap out of me." He shook his head, and rolled his eyes, as if to say, 'oh well, what can you do? It's Gaz'. He took Zim's hands and quickly finished bandaging them up, noting how smooth they were from always being gloved. "There," he said finally, "they should be better in a few days, just don't move them too much.' Zim pulled his gauzed claws back and examined them. He flexed his fingers a bit; he could still use them for most practical purposes. Which meant they wouldn't be of too much use to him for the next day or two. But they could still move, and that was something.

"Satisfactory," nodded Zim.

"Now I think we should go down and get dinner before Gaz murders us any more than she's already going to," stated Dib, looking slightly concerned now that he had remembered that his sister was still waiting.

"Erm... Agreed," said Zim, hastily scampering out the door with Dib closing the door behind them. They walked quickly down the hall and took the stairs two at a time, finally arriving in the kitchen. Gaz was sitting with her headphones on, playing 'Zombie Wombat Attack 3'. An empty bowl sat in front of her. Gir was sitting in the chair next to her; face plunged into what appeared to be some sort of soup. Zim cocked an eyebrow, but didn't say anything for fear of disturbing the lavender-clad demon at the table. Dib walked up the pot on the stove and peered in.

"Maple Beef Stew!" he announced happily. Licking his lips he opened a cupboard to his left and pulled out two bowls, then snatched two spoons from a drawer. He carefully ladled soup into the bowls and plunked the spoons in, stirring a bit. He shoved one bowl at Zim while still holding his. "Try this, it's the best thing you've ever tasted. Maple Beef Stew!" He chirped happily, almost too happily. It'd been a long time since he'd had this.

Zim took the bowl suspiciously. He inspected it, letting his antenna close to it, right into the shimmering steam still coming off the surface. "Maple as in syrup?" asked Zim, attempting to figure out what this stuff was. Dib nodded. There was a silence as Zim narrowed his eyes, as if he could see what was in it if he looked hard enough. "How do I know this isn't an attempt to poison me?" he inquired finally, challenging Dib's good gesture. That was what made him suspicious in the first place. Dib doing something good. He had bandaged his hands though. But that was to stop him from bleeding all over the house. Zim glanced from the soup to Dib, from Dib to the soup, back, forth, back again.

Dib gave Zim a flat look. It was almost a pout, but managed to seem more annoyed than anything. "Because," he said, setting his bowl on the counter beside him. He walked up to Zim with total disregard personal space and grabbed the lip of the quickly warming bowl. He bent his head down, put his mouth the edge, and tipped it towards himself, slurping up a gulp of Zim's stew. He stood back up strait again and took a step back. "It's delicious," he said with a smirk. Zim looked a bit surprised, but obviously if Dib was willing to eat it he wasn't trying to pull anything. Dib grabbed his own soup and plopped himself down at the table. Zim followed suit.

"Ya'know, you could have just eaten some of your own soup," said Zim conversationally, picking up his spoon.

"Yeah, but then you would have said that I did something to your bowl and not mine," countered Dib, spoon still hanging from his mouth.

Zim stuck a spoonful of soup in him mouth as Dib talked and was about to argue, when the amazing taste actually hit him. His eyes widened for a moment, then lids drooped as a slow '_mmmm..._' escaped him. He swallowed, then licked his lips, trying to capture more of that sweet, salty, perfect taste. "That was the most delicious thing in the galaxy..." Murmured Zim, slender tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth.

Then he realized that he had a whole bowl of it in front of him. A bead of drool escaped him lips as he stared at it for a moment, to make sure that it wouldn't disappear. Then he ravenously dug in, gulping down as much of the savory taste as he could. Splatters of stew flew off in random directions, and Dib backed up, staring at the alien who was acting like he hadn't eaten in three weeks. Gir looked up; face still dripping with the same stuff that was now flying from Zim's seat. The robot grinned madly and began to chant, "CHUG, CHUG, CHUG!!" Dib then abandoned his soup and ducked behind the chair, hiding from the scary display at his kitchen table. Gaz was still oblivious, and the soup seemed to avoid her. Even inanimate objects knew better than to mess with her.

Zim finished off his soup by licking the bowl clean very audibly. Dib peeked up from behind the chair to find Zim wiping his mouth off on his sleeve. Dib stared, slightly traumatized.

"You gonna finish yours?" asked Zim, eyeing the bowl in front of Dib. Dib shook his head. Zim wasted no time snatching the bowl and devouring the contents. Dib quickly went back behind the chair and hunched over, waiting for the horrible rabid noises to die off. Once they did he sat in his chair again, but didn't letting his guard down. Zim closed his eyes let out a contented purr and stretched his antenna strait, then let them drop and lay flat against his head. "Delicious," he said. "How come all earthly food isn't this delicious?" he asked, opening his eyes to look at the very disturbed boy in front of him.

Before Dib could attempt a reply a holoscreen floated in with the figure of Professor Membrane on it. "Wow, he's late today," whispered Dib to himself.

"Good Morning Bid!" called the screen cheerfully.

"It's like, 5 at night. And my name is Dib," replied the boy unenthusiastically.

"Please enter code. Do you love me?" asked the screen unconvincingly.

Dib's finger hovered over 'no' for a moment; he always wondered what would happen if... but he pressed the green button, as always. "And I love you too!" chirped the screen. "Don't forget to do the dishes, Fib," it instructed as it floated off.

"My name's- whatever," Dib almost protested, but he knew it was useless. He crossed his arms and huffed dejectedly. There was a pause where he seemed to lose himself in thought for a moment, until a comment from Zim snapped him out of it.

"Your name's whatever?" snickered Zim. It was rather funny to the alien, seeing Dib being ignored by his own people. Ironic, in a way.

"Shut the hell up!" snapped Dib with pure venom. He turned away, scowling fiercely, glad his glasses could hide his eyes. He was trying to keep his composure, but his eyes were welling and he knew it. He crossed his arms even tighter across his chest and hoped that if he held himself enough it would make things better. He began to shake ever so slightly from tensing his mussels so much.

Zim was shocked at Dib's response. How'd he change so suddenly? Why didn't he fight back in the usual manner? He'd never yelled like that before. Zim noted the shaking. He slipped out of his seat and in an extraordinary feat of caring, walked in front of the boy and crouched down so he could be at eye level with him. He put a gauzed hand on the trench-coatless shoulder and tried to see into the honey eyes. Dib turned the other way. '_Breathe_,' he told himself, '_just keep your breathing even. Don't let Zim see you break._'

"What's wrong, Dib?" He left off the insult for the second time that day. Dib shuttered, his breath speeding up. He bit his lip, harder than he ought to have. Zim gently pushed Dibs cheek to face him again, but Dib jerked away and bit his lip harder, so hard that a drip of crimson fell down his pale chin.

Zim firmly grabbed that stubborn chin and forced Dib to stare him in the eyes. "Please stop biting your lip," he said, sounding more like a plead than an order, which was rather strange for the Irken. Dib released his abused lower lip, still trying to control his breathing. Zim, with one hand holding his shoulder and one his chin, wasn't helping much. "What's wrong?" repeated the alien. Dib tensed for a moment, closing his eyes, hoping it would make everything go away, make everything disappear. He didn't dare breathe.

Zim stared at the boy before him. He was trying not to show his concern for his enemy, but he couldn't help it. Dib had done weird stuff before; going off and studying "real science" for a while. But he had come back and they had started their rivalry again. It was just too weird not to have that boy with him. He kind of... needed the boy in a twisted way. Not that he would ever admit it. But now he was acting weird again. Zim had to do _something. _so he said the only thing he could. "Dib."

Dib broke. He inhaled and his tears poured out, no matter how much he wanted to stop them. He shook, sobbing and bowed his head. Zim took his hand away from the boys chin and put it on the other shoulder. Dib gripped his own crossed arms, trying to calm himself down. He dug his nails into his skin. It did nothing.

Zim knew he had to do something. '_What was a way that humans comforted each other? A... hug, it was called? I've got nothing to lose_.' thought the alien. He got closer to the boy and moved his hands down, wrapping him in his arms. He let Dib rest his crying head on his shoulder, ignoring the tears that fell onto his uniform. "Sh... Sh... It's okay," he whispered into the boy's ear. Dib uncrossed his arms and gripped Zim closer to him, still sobbing. "What's wrong?" whispered Zim, holding the boy.

Dib sobbed a few more times, but managed to get himself under control. He sniffled, "Can we talk about it on the roof?" into the crook of the aliens soft neck, hoping he would hear. He clutched Zim even tighter, nuzzling his cheek against the green skin.

"Pfft, emo-kids." said Gaz. Gir was watching her movements on the gameslave from his perch on top of her head.

Zim looked up in alarm; he had forgotten those two even existed. However, he held Dib possessively and ignored them, instead replying to the boy, "Yes." He began to stand up, but Dib shook when he was pulled to his feet. "I don't suppose you can walk in your current state," sighed the alien. He picked Dib up for the second time today, only this time he held him with one arm under his knees and one under his back, the boy's head being supported by the Irken's shoulders. He started up the stairs, hoping that the boy's eyes would stop leaking soon. Dib was acting strange. Almost as strange as Zim himself had been acting.


	7. Chapter 7

**A Promise is A Promise Chapter 7**

Zim sat down on the concrete, the boy still cradled in his arms. The sun was melting into the horizon, and the sky was bursting oranges and pinks. Clouds quickly fading were tinged gold, and it seeped through the leaves on the trees, barely connected to the earth they stood on. Silhouettes and shadows mingled, creating visions of black on the pastel sky. The wind blew ever so softly, skirting along and bare skin it could find and caressing and teasing stray strands of hair. It was pulling them along, in a call to come play on the edge of the sky. The pieces of gold and red that fell from the trees, matching the sky so perfectly, floated past, joining the crowd and meeting with each other in an intricate dance. They escaped from sight, soon replaced with others, the wind ever calling them to come play in the bright eternal sunset.

Dib sighed. He remained silent and watched the crimson orb sink slowly beneath the earth. Zim didn't say a word either. Both were afraid to break the peaceful quiet, wishing that every moment could be as calm as this autumn sunset. But it seemed both their lives were plagued with constant worries and desires. Both worried about failing. Both desired recognition. It was only cruel irony that pitted the two against each other. So much the same, so very different.

The wind gusted harshly. Wetness still staining the boys cheeks pickled, letting cold seep into him. "Zim," he said hesitantly, "would you get a blanket or something? It's getting cold out here." Zim nodded and set him on the ground. Dib sat up and pulled him knees up to his chin, hugging his legs close in an attempt to warm up. He stared off into the distance, as if he was looking for something. Zim turned to steal one more glance at the boy. All he could see was his back. Zim shook his head and continued inside.

He walked into Dib's room with little trepidation- he had been in there earlier without anything exploding, so he was safe, right? He shuffled up to the bed and bundled up the covers. "That ought to do," he said to himself. He began to step out again, when something stopped him. He stood there for a moment, fighting with himself.

"Grah, what am I doing?" he finally exclaimed. "I am ZIM!! One little incident and I'm reducing myself to being around the Dib-monkey and even... uhg, icomforting/i him. Why should Zim be reduced to such things? I am ZIM!! He threw his hands up, even though they still clutched the soft blue blanket. He noticed and lowered it to examine it more closely. "Then again... fighting the Dib is no fun when he's already weak. Besides, I'm injured too," he fiddled with the cerulean cloth as he spoke, spinning it in his hands and turning it over. "And the human did bandage my injuries... let me into his base... feed me that delicious food. Maybe... Urg. I need a vacation," said Zim finally, giving up on trying to figure everything out.

He marched back up to the roof, but tried to stay quiet. He almost walked up to Dib and sat down, but about halfway there he was stopped by a frustrated sigh. "Why can't he even remember my name?" asked Dib. "Why doesn't can't my dad just accept me?" he begged the empty air. "I try everything to get his attention. I even studied 'Real Science' once. But... he did accept me then. He was proud of me. He actually paid attention. But... I gave it up for Zim. Do I care about Zim more than my dad?" he once again waited for the ever darkening sky to give him an answer.

"What am I talking about? Zim is trying to destroy the earth! He's always been. But he's been here so long... and I've seen what he can do... If he wanted to kill me... no, that's... But when I gave up fighting... gave up aliens and Bigfoot and vampires... gave up Zim... I felt empty. Zim didn't do anything, he got all... depressed. So then we... missed each other, we... we care about each other... we... arg, my head," he finished his chat with himself and buried his head in his knees.

Zim tip-toed up to the boy a set his claw on his shoulder. Dib gasped quietly, jerking his head around. "Z-zim? How much d-did you-?" he stuttered, a shiver traveling up his spine.

"Enough," replied the alien. He sat down next the boy and draped the blanket over him. They sat in silence for a bit, as the last of the twilight faded, leaving only pinpoints of light and the deep blue that contrasted it. The wind now had a biting chill to it, and Zim soon found himself shivering. He scooter closer to Dib and grabbed the blanket. Dib made a small whining noise and Zim found that the blanket was smaller than he had thought. With a sigh, he moved over again and leaned hesitantly against Dib, wrapping the quilt around both of them. He soon gave up on trying to hide his tiredness, however, and decided to lean in a bit more.

Dib was bit surprised to find Zim pressing against his side. It was now the aliens turn to rest against a shoulder. Dib leaned his head into Zim's and let it stay there. He let Zim be where he was as he thought. '_I probably won't get another chance to ask him..._' he reasoned. So, he gathering up his courage and hoping for an answer, he finally asked Zim what he'd been meaning to.

"Hey Zim... what's going on with you lately? You're acting strange. And don't try to pretend you don't know what I'm talking about," he added, "because I know you better than that."

Zim sighed, his breath moist against Dib's bare neck. "I was wondering when you would notice. You always notice little things. Details. Hm," he mumbled. Dib moved his head away so he could look at Zim. He was being so quiet. So... un-Zim-like. Zim continued hesitantly, "I guess I shouldn't really worry, but... My Tallest aren't responding to my calls." Dib blinked. Zim's leaders? He hadn't expected that. "I'm beginning to get nervous. It's been days. Suppose the massive was attacked? Suppose something horrible has happened, and the empire needs me? Suppose... " Zim trailed off and ended with an aggravated exhale. There was a slight pause, then suddenly he got a strange impulse. He wrapped his arms around the human's middle. This human 'hug' felt... nice. It was rather comforting.

Dib was at first a bit shocked at the cuddling- Zim was never the affectionate type- but soon gave a reassuring smile. "Hey, c'mon. From what you've told me your Empire is pretty much invincible. They'll be fine. There's probably just some technical difficulties going on or something."

Zim looked up at the boy. "You think so?" he asked, trying not to sound overly troubled.

"Yeah."

Oh, if he only knew how wrong he was.

Zim stared back out to the west. There was a calm rustling as the breeze caught a fluttering leaf in its grasp. It was still cold, although it was bearable because of the warmth of the body next to him. Then suddenly, Dib laughed. Not a happy laugh, though. That bittersweet laugh that's filled with regret and hope at the same time.

"I think I'm going crazy," chuckled Dib sadly.

"You already were crazy," replied Zim, regaining some of his usual spirit.

Dib was about to protest, but something stuck in his mind. He paused for a moment, staring out into the icy blackness. "So... are you saying this is what it's like to be sane?" he asked pensively.

"Define 'this'."

Well, Zim had him there. Dib sighed in defeat. "...'This', heh. Who knows? 'This' can mean anything." He stared off into the distance, his thoughts getting the better of him. "Anything..." he whispered under his breath. There was a thoughtful silence. Both of them looked off at the sky, the alien's arms still encircling the boy. Dib suddenly got the urge to hug Zim back. It iwas/i pretty strange for his people to stop responding to transmissions so suddenly. There had been a lot of noise on the radioscope lately, too. It was no wonder Zim was concerned. Dib gingerly reached around and set his hand on Zim's shoulder, holding the alien loosely to him, hoping he wouldn't pull away. It was cold, that was all. Really.

Zim seemed to lean in to the new touch, nuzzling the warm navy fabric on his chest. He was a lot more anxious than he let on. Irkens had the best technology- well, they stole the best technology, but still- and it was very rare for something like this to happen. (Although, when Zim had been on the planet it hadn't been _too_ rare.) It had been wearing on his nerves for days. It was rather comforting though... to be in Dib's arms. It was warm.

"You... really think I have nothing to worry about?" Zim asked again, still in need of something to calm himself.

"Yeah," assured the boy, "they're probably just going through a rough patch or a cloud nebula or something. Don't worry." He gave Zim's shoulder a soothing squeeze, but noticed then just how tense it was. He hesitated a moment, then began massaging the strained muscles. Zim emitted a groan and grimaced with a hushed 'ow'. He didn't tell the boy to stop, though, so he continued to press on the sore spot and rub circles in the pink uniform.

"If you- ung- say so," muttered Zim. He hadn't been able to relax for... ever. Dibs miniature massage was really painful, but in a good way... somehow. Zim muffled a moan in the dark azure top. He could feel his muscles unclenching and coming loose, letting years of tension escape into the cold night air surrounding them. Zim once again bit his lip, but unintentionally caught a snippet of Dib's top. He began to nibble, unaware that he was beginning to create a spot on the shirt he was clinging to. Even through that, he felt a gentle rise and fall every couple of seconds. He gradually began to calm down, listening for the air rushing into the boy's chest, then pushing out again. He heard a delicate thumping as well- a heartbeat. He settled himself, keeping his attention on the rhythmic 'thud-thud'. The circles became softer as the tender muscles gave in and Zim went almost completely slack. It was only then that Zim noticed the piece of Tee-shirt in his mouth and released it. A tiny spot of drool marked it.

"Th- thank you," stuttered the alien, trying to keep his tone even with the little touches Dib was giving him. It was a rather strange phrase- it seemed foreign rolling off his tongue, yet at the same time he meant it. This day off was just the thing Zim needed right now. The stress had been getting to him- it was the real reason no plans had been formed to take over the world that day, despite his earlier statements to the contrary.

Dib looked down, startled at the words that had just been uttered to him by his greatest enemy. They weren't acting like enemies now though. Zim continued, "...for everything."

Zim looked up, staring through the thin layer of glass and into the honey eyes, peering into Dib's very core; shaking it, rocking every assumption and cruel word off its foundation. There was an earthquake in that simple look, and even though Zim didn't notice, Dib could feel it, and it sent a quiver through him, and made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, made him feel lightheaded, like he couldn't get enough air. He gulped without meaning to, staring back into the scarlet orbs in front of him, gleaming with subtle moonlight. Zim's face was only inches from his now, and they were still loosely clinging to each other. Every contour of Zim's face was illuminated by the pale shine of the celestial light. Something about it...

"I... should be thanking... you..." whispered Dib, voice suddenly hushed because of the Irken's gaze. He couldn't tear himself away from those eyes, those two rubies set in pure emerald. He could feel the warmth from his face radiating off into the night. The blanket wrapped around both of them, tying them together was warm and snug, and every wrinkle of the fabric could be felt by the boy, who's every thought was being taken by this moment, filling up his memory; Zim's face, the soft embrace, everything. Dib couldn't think strait, couldn't stop staring at Zim. He looked so ethereal in the moonlight, his sage skin reflecting, sparkling. The only sound was Dibs breaths, and the far-off howl of the wind and rustling of the leaves. He could see the alien's face, so strange in the night, so close to his own.

Suddenly, Zim released his grasp on the boy and took his hands. They were quickly pressed to the cold cement, pinning Dib in place. Zim turned and shifted, so that he was fully facing Dib. He was staring at him full-force, like he was trying to see into his soul. Zim leaned in, causing the boy to lean back. He was about to fall over backwards when Zim stopped, so close that If Zim had a nose he and Dib would be touching. A gentle rub of fabric from both shirts had Dib realizing just how close he was. The white of his eyes was visible, and his mouth was slightly open, a gasp caught in it, not daring to come out. '_What is he doing?_'

"Dib?" a simple whisper came from Irken, nearly on top of the boy. It sounded odd from the Irken, almost like a... plea. It could have been Dib's imagination, though. "Dib?" repeated the green form blocking out his vision. '_Oh God, what is he doing?_' Zim crept closer, slowly closing the gap between him and Dib, all the while staring into his hazel eyes. '_Oh God, he's going to-_'

Zim's forehead hit Dib's. Gentle breaths from the Irken fogged Dib's glasses ever so slightly, but he could still see the lakes of vermilion searching his eyes. "Dib..." he trailed off. Every movement could be felt. Dib realized that if he just moved his face a few inches- why was he thinking that? Why... why was Zim's looking at him like that? The crimson gaze had the boy captivated. He couldn't have looked away, even if he'd been able to. Dib could feel Zim pursing his lips, narrowing his eyes, about to close them. He just sat, frozen. '_Oh, God, he's-_'

Then the pursed lips formed a syllable. "Why... are you staring at me like that?" Zim narrowed his eyes halfway, but didn't close them. Dib's eyes widened again. He didn't quite remember how to talk at the moment, so Zim asked again. "Why are you staring?" He finally leaned back and relinquished his restraining grip on Dib's hands, allowing Dib to release the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and sit up a bit.

'_Oh, Thank God, I thought he was gonna..._' He finally realized that Zim expected an answer, though, and snapped out of his trance. Staring at the ground and blushing profusely he quietly replied, "You just looked different in the moonlight, that's all. And you were staring at me too." He folded his hands in his lap and continued staring at the ground, his face becoming slightly less flushed.

Zim seemed to be caught off guard by that remark. "Weellll," he said, drawing out the word to try to give himself some time to think, "You... looked strange. I mean, more so than usual. It's that strange glow from your moon. Yes." He coughed, trying to hide the hints of cerulean creeping onto his face.

Dib cocked an eyebrow at the shot to his looks, but shrugged it off and stared out into the sky again. Then, the dreaded awkward silence. There was really nothing to say anymore, just the two boys sitting uncomfortably close, bound by Dib's blanket.

Pause.

"So... uh..." Dib tried to strike up conversation again, and failing miserably. '_Think of something... something, c'mon!_'

Pause.

"Erm..." Zim attempted to pick up conversation as well, and he didn't do much better. '_C'mon think! THINK! Say something to the filthy Earth boy!_'

Pause.

"Wanna go inside?" asked Zim abruptly, sitting up.

"Yup," came the speedy reply. It was getting cold, and Gaz and Gir were probably already into the governments missile bases. Hacking them wasn't too hard, actually. Dib had tried that before, to see if they had anything that would destroy only Zim's house, but all their stuff would at least destroy the city. He had sworn as soon as he got a chance he would get Zim outside the city, but that still hadn't happened. Hm, maybe he would have to-

"Are you coming?" asked Zim, who was already half way to the door with blanket in hand. He was turned around to face the boy. Dib looked up with a start. He mumbled a 'coming' and stood up, walking to Zim's side. Before he got there, however, a thought crossed his mind. He seemed to pause a moment, then ran up behind the Irken and scooped him up in his grasp.

Zim nearly dropped the blanket at the sudden attack. His eyes became circles as they snapped open, and he let a little 'eep' escape him. The boys hands cradled under his knees and neck. He went stiff for a moment before he remembered how to speak. "What are you doing? Release Zim!" he protested, trying to struggle.

Dib just gave a smirk, despite the fact that Zim's struggling kind of hurt considering the beating he got earlier. "I'm just making sure you can't blackmail me for carrying me up here earlier," he retorted, knowing he had just bested Zim once again.

"I- Oh, you're good," remarked Zim, not sounding too happy about it. He shot a glare at Dib as he said it, and Dib just gave him that smug look again.

He marched inside, Zim finally giving up, and went down the stairs to the living room to plop Zim on the couch. He found Gaz and Gir there, surprisingly not destroying anything. Gaz looked up from her game as Zim bounced on the cushions with blanket in hand, looking not all that amused, but still living. Dib sat himself down next to Zim.

"Are you two done angsting?" asked Gaz with her usual air of indifference.

"Yeah." replied Dib.

"Finally. I thought you two had gone emo or something stupid like that," said Gaz, turning back to her game.

Dib made a face at the last sentence. "Ew, no. Emo kids don't do anything but whine. I'm a go-getter, I get stuff done! I... wanna watch a movie?" asked Dib, deflating from his rant. Zim blinked a few times, then casually shrugged.

"Nothing better to do," he mused. "Why not? Zim shall grace you with his presence for a little-"

"Yeah, that's great," interrupted Dib, grabbing the remote from the end table. "What kind of movie do you wanna- ooh, I've got one!" he exclaimed happily, waving the remote around his head a bit as he did. He turned on the cable and went to a pay-per-view channel. After a little button pressing he found what he was looking for. He set the remote back down as a logo popped up with much drama.

"What's goin' on, big-head?" asked Gir, who was completely oblivious to the fact that they'd left in the first place.

"Sh... it's 'The Matrix'," said Dib excitedly. He snapped his fingers and the lights automatically dimmed. Gir 'ooo'ed, but his focus quickly went back to the screen. Zim looked a bit confused, but decided that this would be a good way to collect information. He wrapped Dib's blanket around himself and stared intently at the wide-screen flashing black and green. Gaz miraculously stopped playing, saved, and put her gameslave away.

The fact that they were acting like civilized people probably would have shocked Dib to no end if he weren't already fully engrossed in the movie. Unfortunately for him, it would be one of the last moments of tranquility he would have for a while.

A/N: Savor the peace while it lasts, people.


	8. Chapter 8

Dib screamed. No matter how many times he saw it, that one part still scared him. The one with the robots, and the chamber and the... yeah, you know. That part. 

So Dib screamed like a little girl and clung to Zim, in a fear-glomp of sorts. Dear chex, why did those robots have to be so creepy? He honestly didn't mean to, it was just an automatic reaction.

Zim's eyes went wide for a moment, but he quickly shoved Dib off in annoyance. "I'm trying to take notes, Dib-girly," he shot. He knew it was low, but Dib was so squirmy and excitable watching movies, and this one had some... _interesting_ ideas. Using the humans own twisted minds against them... Zim liked that. It was oh-so evil. Zim had been cackling under his breath almost all through the movie.

"Take notes?" inquired the boy, giving Zim a questioning look, ignoring the 'girly' insult. This seemed to snap him back to reality, though, so he released the Irken, but looked over at the notebook Zim had pulled out from his Pak. He stared blankly- the various methods of torture and cruelty that Zim had already written down were astounding. He suddenly felt very uncomfortable sitting next to the alien, and began to slowly scoot away. However, this meant he was scooting towards Gaz.

"Touch me and die," growled the girl. Dib jumped back with a wide-eyed 'eep'. Then he realized he was near Zim, and jumped back with another 'eep'. Then he was by Gaz again. He looked back and forth from one to the other. He had nowhere to hide- he was surrounded. So, he simply pulled his knees up and tried to make himself as small as possible, hoping that would make him look less killable, or at least a less obvious target. He whimpered, wondering how he gotten himself into this mess.

The movie went on, however, and Dib soon went back to watching obsessively and saying every line under his breath. Zim too became engrossed, and the 'notes' were soon forgotten. Dib wrapped himself in his azure blanket to stay warm, because of the absence of that ever-present trench coat.

The only one not completely captured by the movie was Gaz. Dib had made her watch this stupid movie four times already. She knew what was going to happen and _she was sick of it_. And besides that, things were altogether too pleasant. So she decided to stir things up a bit, and at least get something to munch while being bored out of her mind.

"Dib, go get me some popcorn," she commanded.

Dib popped up, obviously not having the slightest idea what she had just said. Gaz decided to repeat herself. "Go get some popcorn," she said forcefully.

"But it's almost to the good part!" whined the boy. Gaz glared at him. He had apparently forgotten who he was talking to. However, just as she was about to shoot a violent threat at him, she got another idea. It wasn't often she had an audience to torture Dib in front of. Why not make the most of it?

"Fine, I'll get the Dib-bot to do it," she said with the smirk evident in her voice.

Dib dead-panned. "The Dib-bot? Uh- er- no- um..." he sputtered. He was hoping to avoid total humiliation in front of Zim.

"Alright," shrugged Gaz, "then you get it."

Dib glanced back at the movie. The good part really was coming up, and Dib didn't want to miss a second. He turned from Gaz to the TV to Zim to Gaz to the TV to Gaz to Zim to... you get the picture. But after much internal struggle he finally gave in. "Fine, get the Dib-bot," he sighed. He knew it was suicide, but maybe Zim wouldn't notice. 'iYeah,/i' he thought hopefully, '_maybe he'll just keep watching the movie..._'

"Dib-bot?" asked Zim incredulously, turning away from the movie, "You still have that thing?" Dib internally banged his head against a wall.

Gaz chuckled darkly and snapped her fingers. Zim tilted his head curiously, giving Gaz a curious look. Then, a robot version of Dib, minus an eye and wearing a pink, lacey apron came walking stiffly in the door, rusty joints evident in the squeaking sounds that accompanied each step. It was also wearing a pair of matching rose-colored slippers, with embroidered flowers on them, and had a small ribbon tied in a bow on the top of the stray lock that always hung over his head. Oh, how Dib _hated_ that robot.

Zim sat in stunned silence. Those were some... interesting modifications. "Well..." started Zim, seeing how badly Dib wanted to crawl into a hole and die, "I have to say, Dib-stink..." he paused a moment, getting one more eye-full of the Dib-in-drag, "...Pink is not your color." Then he burst into a fit of laughter.

If looks could kill, Zim would have been laying on the floor in a puddle of blood with Swiss cheese for a head. Dib was hoping that he could shoot Zim with his eyes if he glared hard enough, but no such luck. So he tried it with Gaz, who was snickering in her own cruel manner. He didn't fare any better with her. So he decided to try it on the only other semi-living thing there, Gir. He didn't glare for long though, being as, surprisingly, the robot was the only one not having a giggle fit. In fact, he seemed to be studying the other robot and even adopted a 'thinker'-like pose, hand propping up his chin and all. He seemed to be- for once- actually thinking something.

"It neeeeeds..." trailed Gir, obviously in deep thought. He squinted at the robot, as if trying to get a clearer view. Then he suddenly jumped up, a finger pointed in the air. He didn't say anything, but he abruptly turned and tackled Dib off the couch and onto the floor, catching the attention of Gaz and Zim, who stopped laughing momentarily to take notice. Dib was taken off-guard by the sudden attack, and didn't have any time to defend himself. After a small struggle, Gir finally got what he was looking for. "PANTS!" he exclaimed proudly, holding his trophy high in the air, then walking over to the robot and placing them atop its head.

Then there came a pause. A very awkward one.

Zim cocked an eyebrow, and pointed at Dib, as if he wasn't sure he was seeing correctly. Then he decided to speak. "Um... Dib? Why are you..." Zim tried to stifle a snicker, but it didn't quite work. Gaz was shaking, trying not to burst. Zim covered his mouth to stop the laughter, and continued, "...wearing female undergarments?"

Then the two of them erupted into an uproar of laughter. Dib turned a bright cherry red, wishing the floor could shallow him up. It was true; he was wearing a pair of navy panties. He still felt like he had to defend himself though. "Only because they're comfortable!" he exclaimed, jumping to his feet. This only made them laugh harder. Zim was tearing up, and even Gir had joined in with some deranged giggles. Dib stood there, blushing profusely for a minute, before he finally decided that they weren't going to stop laughing any time soon.

"Fine," he said flatly, now more annoyed that they were still laughing than embarrassed, "I'll get the stupid popcorn." He glowered at them one more time before stomping into the kitchen. They still didn't let up, but at least they were partially drowned out by the small distance and the popping in the microwave.

Dib shuffled back into the room, shoving a bowl of fresh popcorn into Gaz's arms, even though she was still cackling cruelly. "Take your **damn** snack," he growled, storming back to his seat and plopping down in it, crossing his arms and huffing dejectedly. Zim finally finished his chuckling and gave Dib a pat on the back in mock reassurance, along with a not so comforting, "It's okay Dib, I still hate you." He, of course, laughed even harder at that, and even fell off the couch clutching his sides. Dib once again wished he had laser vision. He grabbed the lonely blue comforter and wrapped himself in it, realizing he probably wouldn't be getting back his pants or his dignity for a while.

"Well then, I'm going to bed. Disturb me and die," said Gaz, almost cheerfully. She grabbed the small robot at her side and held him to her chest in what could almost be called a protective way, with a "C'mon, Gir." It was more for Zim's benefit than Gir's- he wouldn't be getting the robot back for a while. The Irken stopped laughing to give her a pouting face, but he knew better than to try and actually argue with her. She marched up the stairs with Gir in tow, who was babbling insanely about onions.

Zim looked back at the clearly agitated Dib, lower half now covered by a blanket. He couldn't help but poke fun at him once more. "Aw, does Dibbers feel naked around the almighty Ziiiiim?" he teased, drawing his name out as he traced a line with his bandaged claw up Dib's throat.

Dib huffed indignantly and growled, "Just so you know, I'm stabbing you violently in my mind right now." Zim grinned and nodded enthusiastically, then opened his mouth as if to say something, but Dib cut him off before he could even start. "Ooh, popcorn!" he squealed, grabbing the half-full bowl and placing it in his lap. He then began to munch loudly as he once again became fixated on the movie.

Zim almost began to pout at being cut off, but decided he would try to steal some popcorn as payback. Ever so slowly, he reached out his hand towards Dib, creeping steadily towards his goal. In a sudden, swift motion he grabbed a handful of popcorn and shoved it into his mouth. "Inconspicuous," said Dib, voice dripping sarcasm.

"Yup," replied Zim, stuffing another handful into his mouth.

They both pretty much stayed quiet after that. Dib reclined on the couch, yawning occasionally. It had been a long day for him. Despite how interesting watching the Matrix for the tenth time was, he was getting sleepy. He could feel his eyelids began to drop and his breathing began to even out. '_Ya know, I probably shouldn't fall asleep near Zim. He's liable to kill me in my sleep_,' thought the quickly fading boy. It brought a smile to his face though, and he softly chuckled half-coherently, "Kill me in my sleep." His head began to droop as Zim glanced over, about to ask what he had said. Then he finally gave in, and collapsed sideways, head landing right on Zim's lap.

Zim let out a small, surprised 'eep'. He then looked the boy up and down, cocking a non-existent brow. He paused for a moment, then gave his always stray lock of hair a light flick. Nothing. They boy had fallen asleep. Zim smiled. "Long day must've finally caught up with him," he whispered to himself. He stroked the strand gently, and Dib gave a contented noise. Zim looked around. Gaz had gone to bed hours ago, so it was probably late for the human. He looked over at the end table, and saw a blinking 11:47 glowing electric blue in the darkness. He smirked.

Zim dug his hands under the limp boy and picked him up with little trouble. He soon shifted him so that his arms and not his bandaged hands were carrying the weight. Zim stood up and, extending his Pak's metal legs, turned off the TV and began walking up to Dib's room, with the navy blanket resting over his shoulder.

It was quiet, except for the rustling of a curtain, dragged about by the autumn breeze that had snuck inside though an open window. Zim's spider legs muted clanking was the only other sound in the bedroom. He placed the boy gently on his bed and laid the blanket over him. Dib sighed happily, and snuggled the blanket. Zim's lips once again parted in an amused smile. The boy looked like a smeet, so helpless...

Zim traced a line across the open skin on his pale throat. It would be so easy to end it here, to just... no. No. That'd be too easy. But still... He suddenly grabbed the boy's chin and tilted the face towards his own. It looked peaceful, calm. Zim frowned. This wasn't what he'd planned at all. He moved his face closer to the sleeping boys, still grasping it in his hands. He stopped, only inches away. Dib warm breath hit his face, causing him to pause a second. Then he spoke.

"I can still kill you tomorrow," he whispered softly. Dib seemed to shift uneasily in his sleep. "So enjoy your dreams tonight," he continued, releasing his grip on the boys face, causing it fall back down onto the cushions. He once again adopted a calm face, and his breathing remained even. Zim stepped back, looking at his enemy. "So venerable," he muttered. Then he turned, walking to the open window. He stole one last glance before he stepped up, spider legs extending in a brilliant gliding motion and carrying him outside the window, with a final flutter of the curtains in the breeze as he disappeared into the night.

Zim always had a flair for dramatic exits.


	9. Chapter 9

"Incoming Transmission!" called a technician from his chair, turning to take an expectant look back at his leaders. He waited for a response as the entire Massive seemed to go silent. 

Red groaned. "It's probably her," he mumbled, looking over at his co-leader with a face that showed he was not at all happy about it.

Purple shouted back to him, "Accept the transmission and put her through," with a hint of dread in his voice. The technician swiftly turned back around and hit a key. Everyone stared up at the huge screen in front as an electronic ringing ceased and a face popped up on the monitor in front of them, replacing the Irken lettering on black background. She wore a malicious grin, like she always did when she was getting her way, and her eyes were filled with a resilient patronizing pride.

"What do you want?" asked Purple, clearly (no pun intended) irked.

She gave a cruel chuckle. "I just thought I'd inform you on my progress. I do hope you know I'll be back soon," she said smugly, reclining in her chair and tapping her gloved fingers together. Seeing her so relaxed and happy with herself... it pissed Red off to no end.

"Yeah, that's great, we know. And I hope you're not gonna keep gloating like that," he huffed, crossing his arms.

This only made her grin more. "Well," she smirked, "taking down an army is no small feat." Red lowered his head, glaring and growling menacingly- he was ready to kill. Purple noticed how stressed his co-ruler was, and placed a claw on his shoulder, in an attempt to calm him. Red stopped snarling, but he never took his hateful stare from the cruel woman on the monitor, who was apparently amused at the rulers' antics.

"You're probably very busy," she said, flicking an imaginary speck of dust off her shoulder, "so I guess I'll leave you for now."

"Fine," spat Red. The screen cut to black.

There was a pause. You could cut through the tension in the air with a butter knife. "Red..." said Purple cautiously, rubbing his co-leader's shoulder.

"Don't 'Red' me!" he snapped. Purple drew back his hand, as if he had been bitten. Red gave an aggravated sigh, then turned to face his co-leader. "I'm sorry, Pur, It's just that that cheeky bitch..." he growled, snarling with jagged teeth. It soon trailed off to nothing though, and he slouched, completely drained.

Purple gave him a sympathetic look and placed a claw on his shoulder. "Hey, its okay, lets go get some snacks," he suggested, though not with his usual gusto. He was just as exhausted as his co-Tallest. Red sighed and shrugged, letting himself lean against the mass of violet beside him.

"Lead the way," he said. The two of them floated off together to the snack room, hoping to take their minds off their worries. A lot was resting on the next few days. A break would do them good.

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Dib's head hurt. It hurt like hell. It hurt like a thousand angry death bee's buzzing in his skull. It hurt like a quantum detonator was exploding inside his brain in about ten thousand dimensions. And he had no idea why. "Dammit..." he mumbled, slowly sitting up and pulling the covers off of himself. He was horrified to see that he was still in his panties. Or he would have been, if thinking didn't cause him severe anguish beyond reason. He turned and hung his legs ff the edge of the bed. "Brain... simmering in pain... _simmering..._" he moaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose. Then his fingers brushed up against the wiry flames set tight on his face. He stopped. "My glasses? I always take them off before I go to sleep, why-" The previous night's events hit him. "Oh," he said flatly, "Zim. Leave it to him to not take those off... urg." He stood up, still massaging his temples.

"There's no reason he would know though..." he quietly argued to himself.

"Shut up," he growled, snatching the glasses from his face. The world went blurry, but he would have done anything to stop the pounding in his head. He set them down on his end-table and continued rubbing circles into his scalp. "Stupid..." he mumbled a few curses under his breath, but eventually decided to stumble down and get breakfast.

"Dib? Where are your glasses?" asked Gaz, after Dib had managed to somehow find the kitchen. Not that she cared.

"I took them of for a bit because _someone_ didn't take them off before I fell asleep and they're too small. No matter how many times I try to get dad to buy me new ones he's always too busy with his 'real science'-" Dib made quotey fingers- "to do anything." he huffed and crossed his arms for a moment, but soon gave up on being mad and walked over to the cupboard. "Hey, is this cereal?" he asked, pointing to a box of rat poison.

_'Tempting... but no,_' thought Gaz. "No, that would be rat poison, Dib, and I don't think it'd be very tasty with milk," she responded. Dib flinched, as if the box would bite him. He moved on to the next box, which he recognized as the Count Chocofang, even though he couldn't really see it. He took out a bowl and spoon, but just before he was about to pour, Gaz interrupted, "Dib, that's dishwasher soap."

He froze. No, that probably wouldn't be very tasty with milk either. He decided to just give up on cereal and have some POOP Toaster Poppers. Those were always in the same place in the cupboard. He put away the bowl and spoon, and the box of dishwashing detergent and pulled out a small plate and a package of the strawberry Toaster Poppers. After a finger-tapping minute or two they sprang up and landed on Dib's plate at the table. '_At least Dad's 'real science' is good for something,_' he thought, shoving one into his mouth and taking a large bite.

After he finally finished shoving the pastry down his throat he got up and, after putting his plate in the sink, began rummaging through the cupboards. "Hey Gaz," he asked, pulling out a plastic bottle and rattling it, "is this aspirin?" He was going to need to see today, so an aspirin was going to have to get him through the day.

'_Why do we have so much rat poison?_' she wondered. Out loud she simply said, "No, Dib, the aspirin is on the left." He put the bottle back and took out the correct one, thankfully. He took one bright-orange pill dry and set the bottle back in its place in the cupboard. It was lucky for him that he took it then, because he was really gonna need it.

He turned around and smacked right into a small metallic object, knocking him over and causing him to sprawl comically onto the floor. "HI BIG HEAD!!" screeched a small robot, who had clamped himself onto the boy's feet. Gaz sniggered in her seat.

"What? When did you get in here?" he asked, utterly bewildered.

"I slept with him," explained Gaz. Dib gave her a very strange look, and she explained flatly, "I mean he slept in my bed, moron." Dib mouth widened into an 'o', before he turned back to the demon seed around his ankles. He propped himself up on his elbows and sighed.

"Well, I guess we'll bring you back to Zim on the way to school, hm?" he addressed Gir, who seemed to be preoccupied humming a tune. His head popped up and he nodded vigorously, all while clinging to the boy's ankle.

Dib sighed. "Why do I get the feeling this is gonna be a _looong_ day?" he asked no one in particular, rolling his eyes. He began to get up, but the robots hug left him a bit unable to move. "Erm, can you get off now?" he asked. He got on his hands and knees, trying to push himself up. When that didn't work, he crawled to the cupboards and used them to pull himself up. But now that he was standing, Gir was making him teeter dangerously. He clung to the counter top and managed to pull one leg out of the robot's death-grip. "Alright, you can let go," he said, frustration showing through, if only a bit. He began to walk towards the stairs. "Let-" he grunted, trying to shake off the mechanical menace, "-Go!" he said, with an annoyed tug with his trapped leg. This, however, pulled it out from under him, and he went once again toppling to the floor.

"Nice job, Panty-Boy," remarked Gaz.

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Zim looked up, startled. He could have sworn he had heard the Dib yelling something along the lines of 'shut it!', but it might have just been his imagination, or the machines in the base. He had been so engrossed in his work that he hadn't noticed the time. He looked to the clock he had built into his right glove. Dib had just suggested a watch, but Zim was far superior to that _earthly_ technology. He built his own from scratch, simply to prove he could, and a few kids had actually asked his how to get one. That had been how he had been making 'Earth Monies' for the past few months. Teenage humans apparently swooped on anything new the second they saw it.

Zim did a double-take. "Oh my Tallest, skool starts in half an Earth-hour!" he said, jumping up, leaving his experiments to most likely explode unattended. He skittered to his elevator and hopped in, shouting orders at his computer, who only replied with a bored sigh. He was soon in his 'room', an expansion of the top level that he had recently added, with all he needed for his disguise. He learned that the humans often had this private space, and he had taken full advantage of it. He even had a few normal looking posters on the walls. One had a cartoony looking bunny, declaring, "Cute but Psycho. Things even out." in bold letters. One of the things about this planet Zim could appreciate was the few smart people certainly had a wry sense of humor. Another pictured a disturbed looking human grinning madly, with the only caption asking, "Z?"

Zim grinned. He would wear his charcoal hoodie today. It had the same question on it. It was one of the few articles of clothing from Earth he would actually wear. He had stopped wearing his plain pink uniform every day, but once in a while he would wear it again, for old time's sake. Yesterday had been one of those days. But today Zim felt renewed, so he decided to go a bit wild. Hoodie, jeans, sneakers, the works. He even decided to wear the wig Gir had made him buy a few months ago. It was shaggy and the same raven black, though not as stiff as his old wig. On top of it all, he wore a pink choker; that same pink on his uniform and on the trip of his sneakers. He always wore something that was that neon rose color. It suited him.

He popped in his lavender contacts, the final touch, and stepped out of his 'room', shutting the door behind him. He could almost be called normal, his wig hiding the lack of ears. However, his green apple skin and noseless face were still apparent. Anyone stupid enough to point it out, however, would either get a guilt trip about skin conditions and political correctness, or a fist to the face. Both seemed to be rather effective. Zim examined himself in the mirror on the back of his door, striking many a pose. He ended up winking at himself and blowing kisses, Tallest knows how. The only thing that stopped him from frenching himself was Minimoose, carrying a rose and wearing his black visor still, floating in with a squeak.

Zim wheeled around. "Ah, minion! Keep an eye out for the rabid weasels while I'm gone today, I just know they're still looking for that orange juice," he commanded. Minimoose gave a blissfully unaware squeak, and Zim, satisfied, marched out the door.

"Bye son!" called the robo-parents as he left.

"I really need to dismantle those," he mumbled, stepping out onto the sidewalk and beginning his walk to the torture of another bland earth day.


	10. Chapter 10

Dib stood in the doorway, biting his lip. He felt exposed without his trenchcoat, still lost in a heap of dirty clothes, so he decided to wear his only hooded sweatshirt. It was navy blue, worn and old- the last time he had worn it was that whole 'Mortos' incident. It had that familiar, comforting feeling, like a favorite stuffed animal. However that brought him no solace as he stood on the threshold, staring out nto the empty sidewalk, waiting for the sky to fall on his head. 

"Hurry up!" exlaimed his sister, shoving him out the door and pushing him down the path to the curb, where she turn and walked, absorbed in her Gameslave. He stood mortified for a second before running up behind her, hoping she would give him some protection. Had he been in a more rational state of mind, he would have seen how rediculous that was.

As they slowly approached the Skool, he unconsiously began searching for Zim. If those kids came back for a second round of beating, they would think twice when they saw Zim again. After what happened to Torque, there was no way anyone would think to mess with the strange green-toned boy. He didn't seem to be anywhere, though. Dib anxiously moved closer to Gaz as the playground came into view, the brick building following close behind.

Suddenly, a voice pierced his bubble of worry, causing him to jump nearly a foot in the air. "Hello, Dib stink!" called a familiar voice in the distance. Dib wheeled around to see- who else?- Zim, dashing towards him with a half-smirk on his face. Dib clutched his heart and exhaled, waiting for the alien as his sister continued on her own.

"Jeez, Zim, don't do that!" he exclaimed, trying to catch his breath a bit.

"What, are you telling Zim that you're still skiddish from yesterday?" the Irken teased.

"No..." began the boy defensively. He was quickly cut off with a startled 'eep' on his part, as Zim pulled his fist back and faked a jab at his stomach, without actually hitting. He instinctively covered his middle with his arms, trying to protect his already bruised torso. Zim eyed the boy, pointing a finger at him with his already outstreatched hand.

"You lie," he hissed, "you _lie_." Dib could feel Zim leering into his soul and leaned back, wide-eyed fright in his face. He gulped uneasily. What had he done now? Then, the aliens glowering mask cracked, and he smirked at the frightened boy. "Silly human," he chuckled.

Dib's fright soon turned into a scowl. '_Great, Zim almost punches me then laughs at me,_' he mentally grumpled. "So, you are you on this fine morning?" he snapped sarcastically, slumping as he walked.

"Well," responded Zim, "I'm actually quite fine. I did much planning, and I now have a fool-proof plan to disarm you." He glanced over at the boy, clenched one eye shut and grinned, the Irken body language for a good-natured joke. "But you'll never know." He closed his other eye and stretched his arms into the sky, then interlaced them and placed them behind his head with a yawn.

Dib cocked an eyebrow at this, but soon found himself smiling in spite of himself. Zim somehow knew how to lighten things up; made it seem like maybe they werent so bad. He rolled his eyes and shook his head, but never lost the smile. It was only then that he realized that they were on the front steps of the school.

An incoherent scream left this mouth as he dashed up behind Zim and tried to hide himself from the front door. Zim's claws broke their interlock and he lowered his arms somewhat, but not completely to his sides. Dib was holding onto his hips too hand to do that. "Those kids are gonna get me, what if they want seconds, I should stayed home, ohhh-" he groaned. What he would've given to be somewhere else right then. He let his head drop, deafeated, and knocked his head against Zim's PAK. "Ow," he mumbled, pulling away rubbing his head. "Well great," he mumbled, "there goes my headache again." His short grasp on Zim's waist was broken, and he slunk to the Irkens side.

"I dont suppose you could walk through the halls with me?" he inquired, not really hoping for much.

Zim paused a moment, then gave him a bent smile. "Alright," he replied.

"Just so you ca- what?" He had already thought up some persuasions as to why Zim should bother to be nice, one of them being a reminder that he couldn't kill him if he was already dead. However, Zim's swift, grinning acceptance caught him off-guard. "You- you really will?" he asked, eyeing the Irken suspiciously. "You wont let them beat me up again?"

"I promise that nobody else will hurt you," he said, holding out his lightly gauzed claws, a rare sinscere smile on his face. Dib stared at the open hand for a moment, then met Zim's eyes and took it with one firm shake.

Neither of the two had any idea at that moment what they had both gotten themselves into, with just two little words.

"I promise," Zim repeated.

Dib's suspiciouns ebbed a little, but he couldn't fully trust the alien just yet. They broke the handshake, but Dib still hovered as close he could to Zim without seeming creepy. Or too creepy, anyways. Together they walked through the door, Zim finding the whole thing mildly amusing, Dib trying not to look like he was about to run screaming. He wasn't completely unjustified in having his nerves on edge- the crowd from the earlier day was still lingering in the hall when he and Zim walked through the halls. Everyone, however, was giving the pair wary glances. Word traveled through middle school like electricity through a pond. It just happened that a few fish usually got zapped along the way. Nobody spoke to them, but you could see in their faces that the second you turned away they would turn to each other again, to discuss the latest 'developments'.

Zim scoffed. "Cowards, all of them," he mumbled, turning slightly to Dib and lowering his voice so only he could hear. Then he turned his head forward again. "If they have something to say, they should say it strait to our faces!" he shouted, though speaking to no one in particular. It sent a ripple of quiet out, followed by a burst of conversation. A few of the gossiping girls stopped and looked, with sparkly flourecent eyeshadow rimming their wide eyes. Zim only walked on though, Dib following close behind.

They soon managed to get to class and sit down. Zim proped himself up on the surface of Dibs desk and sat there, elevated above Dbi, who was sitting in his seat, contenting himself with staring out the window. Zim was just staring off into space. There was a comfortable silence between them, which was actually pretty scary if you thought about it, until the bell rang, sending Zim back to his seat and leaving Dib to duck spit-wads and paper balls all day.

Thanks to his schools disturbing graded looping system, every class got the same teacher two years in a row. Thus, Ms. Bitters once again floated to her desk menacingly, calling a bland roll call without even bothering to check wheather a student was actually there or not. That had come in handy a few times, when Dib and Zim had decided to fight during the school day.

"Now class," she croaked, "it seems that some of you are so eager to fail miserably at the impossible goals of successful and happy life that you felt the need to start a fight yesterday. While normally I'm all for the ruthless weeding out of the waste unworthy of scraping off the bottom of the barrel, school property was broken, and as a result, the students at fault will be going to detention for a month to make up for the damages, and you'll be geting a lecture from several high-ranking teachers and staff members." An audible groan rose from the student body. Nobody wanted to spend the next few hours listnening to a principles desperate pleas to get soem form of order.

"Silence!" shouted Ms. Bitters, eyes narrowing dangerously. There was an instant absense of noise. She perked an eyebrow, giving them all one last angry glare to make sure they wouldn't do anything stupid. However, it didn't work. One student was unfortunate enough to have a cold, and her tiny sneeze got her a one way ticket to the underground classroom. "Now then," she said in her gruff, constantly annoyed voice, "I have a list of students who're going to detention." She cleared her throat and picked up a piece of paper that seemed to have magically appeared on her desk.

Dib internally moaned. He was always to blame for everything- he would probably get put on hard labor for a month. He slumped in his chair, listening to names being read off. '_Oh well_,' he mused, '_At least there'll be some kind of justice_.'

"And..." she trailed off, squinting at the paper for a moment. Dib rolled his eyes, waiting to hear his name again. If he could have slunk lower without falling off under his desk, he would have. Ms. Bitters looked up. '_Here is comes..._' he thought, mind filled with dread. "Zim."

He immidiatly perked up. Had he heard right? Yeah, Zim was sitting a few seats away from him looking stunned. "You will report to the principal after school to try and make up for your pathetic excuses for lives," she growled, moving over to the chalkboard. "Now then, todays lecture will be about seaweed, and how it will eventually choke out all the sunlight for the fish, completely destroying the earths foodchain and sending us into a cataclysmic famine that will wipe humans off the face of the earth!"

Dib, however, wasn't listening. '_I didn't get in trouble!_' he exclaimed in his mind. '_I didn't get in trouble and Zim did!_' he turned to said Irken, who was lookng very confuzed at the moment. Or maybe it was severly annoyed, who knows. Whatever the case, Dib glanced at Zim, and Zim glanced back. Dib internally flinched- he didn't think he'd ever been given such a dirty look before. Except for that one time when he'd- oh, and there was the whole- ooh, and then there was that clown thing... hm, okay, he's gotten worse. But it was still a really nasty look. He only gave Zim a weak smile and a shrug in return. Zim then shot him a flat look and pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from his PAK. One bump on the head wtih a paper ball and one serpintine toungue poking out to show it's utter distain later, and Dib was holding a rumpled note in his hand.

'_I hate you, just so you know. And dont think that little shrug will solve anything. You're still a very annoying, very strange human, and just because nobody else can hurt you doesnt mean I can't. Got it, panty boy?  
-Zim'_

Dib looked up to see Zim once again squinting out of one eye at him with that same quirky smile. Dib flipped it over and began writing his response.

_'I know, and I'm sorry that I didn't get unfairly accused for once. I dunno what happened there. And I'm just glad you intend to keep your promise. Got it,-_ '

Now he just needed some kinda clever insult for Zim. He tapped his bottom lip, a weird habit he had picked up from the alien. He held up his index finger, a lightbulb going off in his head. He scribbled down the new nickname and crumpled up the ball again. he tossed it to zim with deadly accuracy, who wasted no time unfloding it. He nodded for a moment or two, until he hit the last part. Cocking a non-existant brow he mouthed, 'Zimmy-pants?' Dib merely shrugged again, shutting his eye, mirroring what Zim had done earlier. The alien just shook his head and mumbled, something about 'silly humans' and the like. They continued passing notes throughout class, all the way up to when the bell rang for lunch. Everyone was out before Ms. Bitter could make another cynical comment.

Dib and Zim lost each other in the whirl of passing people. Dib saw Gaz only a few seconds after he lost Zim, so he thought himself safe. Zim, no the other hand, set off companionless to lunch. Not like anyone would dare bother him. You'd have to be crazy to mess with him.

Zim sat alone as usual. Dib had naturally gravitated toawrds Gaz and began talking, although she really didn't care in the least. "You know, Gaz," he said through bites of food, "I wonder whether Zim is really being sinscere. I mean, it seems like it, and it's actually pretty nice acting somewhat civilized towards him, seeing as he's the only one who ever-"

"You know what your problem is?" Gaz suddenly piped up without looking from her game, which she somehow played in school without any teachers noticing. Or maybe they did- it wouldn't be too surprising if they just didn't want to deal with calling her out. Her dad was infamous, and trying to do anything about Gaz would mean standing up to Membrane, and nobody wanted to have a talk with the professor. That and the fact that Gaz would plunge them into the horrible depths of a nitemare world.

Dib sat up, a bit startled. Gaz was actually talking back to him, and it sounded like she had something to say. "What?" he responded, putting down his spoon and giving her full attention.

"You're attracted to Zim because he believes in you while no one else will, even though your enemies, so you're bound to be stuck with him for life. You're also angry that you could be left alone in the world, and Zim seems sympathetic for you. You're also sick of trying to save a doomed world, but dont know what will be left if you give up." She looked him strait in the eye, sending a chill down his spine. "And you want so desperately to be heard that you dont realize that someone has heard you."

Dib's mouth dropped open and he stared, horrified, at Gaz. He tried to mumble something in response, but all he got were some strange wimpering noises. A hand moved up to clutch his head in confusion. He slowly stood up, and took a tiny step backwards. Then another, and another. After a while, he had successfully slowly backed away and sprinted towards Zim. He practically jumped behind him, not daring to look back up in case she caught his eyes again. Zim looked at the boy hiding behind him, bewildered.

"What are you doing?" he asked, raising a non-existant eyebrow.

"Gaz... phycobabble... brain trauma..." he stuttered, clutching Zim's shoulder and daring a peak up at the girl before quickly retreating back behind the alien again.

The Irken gave him a look that told him, 'you are the stupidest human I have ever seen', but he outwardly just asked him if he was crazy or not.

"No! She just totally phycoanalyzed me out of the blue! It's like she can see inside my head!" He exlaimed, adding on a quiet, "It's scary."

"Are you benig crazy again?" piped up Zita, sitting 3 tables away.

Dib peered up from Zim's shoulder. "No... It's Gaz," he mumbled. "Go ask her what she thinks is wrong with you!" he called.

Zita gave him the same look ZIm had given him. "Ooookaaay..." she said, getting up anyways. She approached Gaz cautiously, looked to make sure she didn't have anything dangerous on her. Before she could ask, however, Gaz began talking.

"You're mother was attacked by a crazy man in an alley. Your father was descriminated against as a child. You felt trapped in the middle of your two sisters, but now you feel guilty because your older sister has been missing for months and you told her you hated her. You overcompensate by trying to constantly please everyone."

Zita's eyes went wide for a moment as she stood there. Then she quickly turned around and walked back to her table. She was visibly shaken. As she passed Zim's table, she exchanged a glance with Dib, and he returned it from behind Zim.

"Is this idiocy done yet?" asked Zim flatly, acting sick of Dib clinging to him. He really didn't mind, but it was... it seemed wrong to let Dib hang off of him. He didn't want Dib to be hurt by anyone else though- he had a promise to keep- so he guessed he would have to permit it.

Dib stayed like that all through recess and on the way back to class. As they walked through the halls together, they once again got looks from many of the gossips, and Dib realized that it he weren't hugging himself to Zim he would probably getting a second round of beating. That only made him grasp tighter to the strong but slender Irken shoulders, and follow closer. He was almost touching the back of Zim's PAK, but he didn't dare move farther away. Zim hesitated for a moment, but then moved up his claw and rested it on top of Dib's hand on his own shoulder. They walked down the halls like that, with Zim's hand resting on Dib's, gently petting it. When they finally got to class, Dib reluctantly pulled away, sitting quietly at his desk.

As Ms. Bitters began to rant once again about the perils of life and how they would eventually kill everything off, something struck Dib, and he glanced over at Zim again. He stared out of the corner of his eye, tilting his head down and brushing the bangs out of his eyes, cheeks tinting light pink.

_'Was he just holding my hand?_'


	11. Chapter 11

The pair managed to get out of skool with all their limbs still attached, and Dib had spent much of the last part of the day convincing himself that he had completely lost his mind. 

_'What are you thinking? No, he wasn't- well, actually he was holding my hand, but I was scared! Yeah, he was just protecting me... wait, what the hell? Zim protecting me? But that makes sense; he's so darn protective of what he thinks is his... ew. Anyways. Why is this bugging me so much? It's not. I mean, so he was holding on to me... Why do I get butterflies when I think about it? Maybe it's just creeping me out. But it wasn't really creepy... Was it?_' His stomach was doing flips all through class as he tried to sort out everything plaguing him. Luckily for him, Zim didn't seem to notice all the times Dib glanced at him through the rest of the day.

Of course, when the last bell rang, students all leaped into action and went through the usual routine of jumping out of any opening they could to get outside, even if it meant going out a third story window. The mob of kids pouring out would cushion the fall anyway.

They had silently agreed to part ways at the end of the school day. Dib almost waved a little goodbye to the Irken as he walked off, but decided against it at the last second; instead using the breath he had been saving to call out for a sigh.

They arrived home without too much trouble, although it looked like a few people might have needed medical attention from the random death glares Gaz gave passerby. Dib pitied the people of this city sometimes. Now he more often than not felt a sense of justice from it. He knew deep down that they deserved what they got, but he still cared about the planet. He knew there were still good people out there. Somewhere. They seemed to avoid Dib like the plague, though.

He only lingered a few minutes once he got to his house. He wanted to see what Zim had in store for him. He was already plotting his break-in as he approached the glowing green base, wedged between two much larger brick buildings. "Oh yes, as inconspicuous as ever," he whispered, mild annoyance showing through. Zim was better than that, and they both knew it. Dib had caught on to the fact that Zim was showing off to him pretty early. He was showing just how outlandish he could be without arousing suspicion. So far, nobody had paid him any extraordinary mind. Except for Dib, of course.

He crept quietly up to the front yard, though not close enough to set off the gnomes. He peered in from behind a shrub, decorated with bright red and green lights. Zim had added that on some time around last X-mas. Dib had once heard from his father that they used to call the holiday something else, but over time people just adopted a new name for it. X-mas cakes are good. Dib blinked. "Wow, I'm having some A.D.D. issues today," he mumbled. With a quick shake of the head he cleared his thoughts once again, observing the house with pencil and paper poised.

After ten minutes, he was almost falling asleep on the sidewalk. "Why won't something just **happen**?" he grumbled, eye twitching slightly. It was a sign that he would soon explode from boredom. Then he sighed again. "Alright, obviously I'm gonna have to go on the offensive... he's not coming out," he explained to himself, sounding slightly irritated. On the inside, though, he was wearing a goofy grin. He loved when he actually got to stuff. And invading was his specialty.

...Kinda creepy if you thought about it.

He slowly snuck up to the perimeter of the gnome field, watching carefully for anything suspicious. Of course, if you stared too long at Zim's house you would go blind, so 'suspicious' was a relative term. Very relative.

Dib crept along the outside wall of the neighbor's house, slowly sneaking with back to the bricks up to Zim's house. He had found this glitch in the defense a while ago. He had just been lucky enough not to get caught. He snuck in with ease, and was soon crawling around the base down to the lab. He soon found what he was looking for.

Zim was working diligently on a large machine of some sort- not with his bandaged claws, but with his PAK legs. It was fairly large, large enough to fit a person inside, and looked almost like a giant black egg with feet. A pair of protective goggles were pulled over the Irkens eyes- tinted, so that it was impossible to see which way he was looking. Dib couldn't quite see what it was from his angle, so he decided to chance it and run for a better view.

He moved silently on his toes, keeping careful watch on Zim to make sure he didn't notice him. He made it to a place where he could see everything, a few meters behind Zim, but hidden amongst the machinery. Or at least he hoped.

Dib leaned forward, trying to get an even better view of what Zim was doing. Sparks were flying off the machine and the loud sound of welding filled the air. He didn't notice the sharp piece of wire sticking out of one of the bundles of wire he balanced himself on, however, and made a surprised 'ah!' when it dug into his palm.

Zim stiffened, but didn't turn around. Dib put his hand to his mouth and froze, feeling the hair on the back of his neck prickle outwards. He tried to suck the blood from his cut, already over his mouth, hoping it wouldn't inadvertently make anymore noise. Zim turned off the welding torch slowly, but without any indication that he was nervous. In fact, Dib could almost see his smirk as he turned ever so slightly towards him and shouted, "Minimoose! Come and bask in my glory."

The tiny purple minion floated in with a loyal squeak. "See this, Minimoose? This will be the Dib's demise." He pointed to the thing he had just been working on. "Yes, this amazing device will answer all our problems, just you wait." He waggled a finger at the hovering... whatever that thing is, as if correcting a small child who didn't understand a math problem. "This AMAZING DEVICE, which the humans inspired with the story of their own demise, shall be the human's demise! Isn't it brilliant?!" Minimoose squeaked in agreement.

Dib quietly breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed. Zim hadn't noticed him, he was just ranting to Minimoose. And now he was glad he came- that aliens pride in himself would be his undoing. He was spilling all the information he needed without even knowing it! Dib grinned- this is what he lived for. He listened intently again. Zim sounded like he was about to say something important.

"You don't know the half of it! I promised that putrid boy I wouldn't allow him to be harmed, yes, but I don't have to harm him to defeat him. He won't even know what hit him." Minimoose once again voiced its amazement. "This little machine will be his undoing, and the great thing is his OWN PEOPLE CAME UP WITH THE IDEA! LAUGH WITH ME, MINIMOOSE!" Zim began to cackle hysterically, with Minimoose copying him with screeching high-pitched squeals. Dib leaned forward even more. He wanted to know what it was, he bneeded/b to know what it was now.

Zim's evil laughter died down. Without batting an eye he added, "Oh, and Dib, next time you sneak into my base, don't leave the front door open."

Dib felt his chest hollow out and his spine go cold. Zim didn't turn around, but Dib took the hint that he should probably get the fuck out. He ran as fast as he could back the way he came, out the front door and away from the gnomes, before they even knew what had sprinted past. He ran all the way home, huffing to catch his breath against the front door. "Ho- ly- crap-" he puffed between breaths.

Suddenly he felt the door leave him and, without anything to support him, he fell backwards and landed on his butt. "What were you doing just now?" inquired Gaz, sounding like she already knew the answer.

Dib took a few more deep breaths to try to regain composure. "Jeez, Gaz! I almost had a heart attack. That's twice in 5 minutes, that's not good." he mumbled, half-coherently holding his head.

"Riiiight," she sighed. "Just don't drink the last soda, I want it later. If you need me I'll be decimating the final boss." She walked away and began to once again smash the buttons of her Game slave three. Dib wondered how the thing didn't just fuse to her skin.

As the last strand of bright purple hair went into the kitchen, Dib stood up and brushed himself off. There were a few grease stains on his clothes, but the cut seemed to have healed up already, leaving a nice scab. "Pleasant," he murmured, examining the red streak down his hand. He sighed and figured it would be gone by tomorrow- his body healed incredibly fast, probably due to the fact that if it didn't, Zim would have killed him by now. At least, he figured. But that lead him back to what Zim had said earlier. So they were apparently still enemies, but Zim was going to keep his promise after all. "I should ask him about that when he comes to doom me..." he thought aloud.

"IF YOUR OBNOXIOUS NOISE MAKES ME LOOSE THIS GAME YOU WONT HAVE A THROAT TO MAKE NOISE WITH!" shouted Gaz from the other room. Dib internally flinched and decided that leaving would be in his best interests. 'And maybe I can do so research while I'm in my room. I need to figure out what Zim's planning,' he pondered.

A few hours of typing later and he still had no idea what was going to happen. "Great, just great," he muttered, crossing his arms across his chest. He had been Googling everything he could think of and nothing got him anywhere. "Of course, I could just be wasting my time- Zim could've known I was there all along and given me a false lead," he said to himself. "Or maybe he's not planning anything at all; he's just trying to get me riled up. Or maybe-" A knock on the glass outside his window interrupted his wild speculations.

"Hm?" he looked up, staring out the window. It was late twilight, and the receding day left the sky a strange blue, tinged with yellow along the horizon. He stood and walked to the window, lifting the clear glass and staring out. "Hello?" he called, expecting to find someone with a bundle of rocks standing beneath him. However, only his echo replied. He tilted his head in confusion and leaned out to get a better look, and that's when he heard the soft reply, with an easily detectable smirk.

"Hello, Dib-worm."


	12. Chapter 12

"Hey!" Dib barely had time to call out before he was pulled through the window and out into the cold night, hanging precariously by his shirt collar. One of Zim's mechanical legs suspended him in the air, allowing him a nice few of the ground a good twenty feet away, before whisking him onto his roof and under the boot of a cocky Irken.

"Bet you didn't see THAT coming!" he exclaimed.

"No shit..." mumbled Dib, sounding muted from the weight on his chest. Zim beamed happily at him, looking quite proud of himself.

"And I bet you're just oozing to find out what my plan is," he smirked.

"Uh, sure?" answered Dib unsurely.

Zim's oblivious grin widened even more. "Well then, let me show you!" He turned and pointed off to the side, where the huge machine that Dib had seen earlier was sitting. How Zim got in on his roof, he would never know, nor care, because in a few moments he was thrust head-first into the white goop that now filled the egg-like dome, and a giant latch's 'click' followed from above, meaning he was completely trapped in Zim's insane machine.

His first instinct was to scream, but that would mean allowing some of the whatever it was into his mouth, which he figured was a bad idea. He made his way to the glass and began pounding angrily, trying to get Zim to let him out.

"Brilliant, isn't it?" he bragged from the outside. To Dib it sounded garbled and strange, but he could make it out okay, considering. "If it seems familiar, there's a reason why. You know that silly movie of your humans' invention? Yes, well, guess your species isn't completely useless after all, huh? They're pretty good for bringing about their own demise!" He let loose a bout of cackling at this, causing Dib to glare at him, face pressed against the window as best it could. "It's mashed potatoes, so you'll get all the nutrients your pathetic body needs."

By this time, Dib was begging to turn red in his desperate need for oxygen. He licked his lips, momentarily giving a crap about what Zim had to say. It was indeed mashed potatoes. _'Oh great, death by French fry,'_ he mused. He continued to knock furiously at the viewing window, trying to get Zim to notice his red-faced rage or the fact that he would indeed be harmed, despite earlier promise, if he didn't get out of there pretty soon. He was fighting the terrible urge to inhale as best he could, but he knew that he would pass out in another half a minute. Animal instinct was trying desperately to take over, and Dib was fighting just as hard. _'Goddamn it Zim, how thick can you get, if you don't get me out of here I'm gonna kill you, or be dead, oh crap, I need to breathe, you idiot!'_ he ranted in his head, which partially helped his lack of oxygen. Zim had degenerated into maniacal laughter once again. In desperation, he banged his head against the glass, which accomplished little more than giving him a headache and almost causing him to take some of the mush into his lungs.

It however, did get Zim's attention. He snapped out of his evil giggle-fit and stared at the boy. "Hm? Frustrated, Dib?" he teased, seeing the boys red face. Then he noticed the bluish tinge. "Dib?" he inquired, slightly confused. The boy responded by smashing his head against the glass again, this time splitting a line of skin above his left eyebrow and tinting the food around him pink.

"Crap," mumbled Zim, finally realizing that something was wrong. He began fumbling with the hatch on top of the device. He was momentarily thankful for not having useless extra digits like humans did to get in the way. Thanks to his own genius, he had put about five unnecessary locks on the opening. "Dib-thing, why do you not breathe in the lovely nutrient bath?" he cooed, staring at the boy and undoing the mechanism as fast as he could. Dib shot him a glare, even through his quickly waning consciousness. Strength was beginning to drain from him, and he could feel his body turning to lead. Black was beginning to swirl on the outskirts of his vision.

With the first 'click' Dib was pleading for Zim to hurry up, and cursing him at the same time. By the second he was desperate; third he was dying for a breath. As the fourth lock came undone his vision was bathed in shadows as his brain tried to shut down everything that didn't need oxygen. He went limp, and could feel himself fading fast. Just as the final lock came undone, a final flash of light came from the opening and he blacked out.

"Dammit," swore Zim under his breath, a habit he had picked up from the humans. He reached in and tried to fish out the limp boy, but didn't succeed until a mouthful of potatoes had made its way down his throat. He tossed him on the ground, and seeing his blue color, swore again. He plunked to his knees above him, straddling his hips, and chewed on his lip. 'Oh my Tallest, what happened? He's not breathing, that's... that's bad. What was it that humans do to fix that? Press their lips... oh my Tallest, no.' he thought to himself, trying to decide what to do. He contemplated the boy for a few more seconds than he probably should have, then decided to try to wake him up with a slap to the face.

When nothing happened he swore again. 'No, I can't believe this, I have to help him, oh my Tallest...' he continued babbling in his head. 'I have to press our lips...' he thought, distressed, trying to ignore the butterflies in his stomach that he had no explanation for. He bent his arms, lowering himself closer to the stiff human. He paused, only inches from the boys face. 'A promise is a promise...' he resolved, and moved in to close the gap.

However, he never got there, as Dib began to cough and spasm like he was dying. Which he kinda was, being as he had a lung full of mashed potatoes. Zim let a surprised 'ah!' escape him as he leaned back and watched Dib until he had turned on his side under him and began to cough out the offending mush. Splatters of white appeared next to his head, spraying from his mouth as he desperately tried to rid himself of the sensation of choking and get some air. Zim could only watch, caught by his own morbid curiosity on his hands and knees above his enemy.

Dib finally seemed to realize that the alien was still present after a few difficult moments. "What-" he took a ragged breath, "-the hell- was that?" He glared up, just barely turning his head with the little strength he had. As soon as he could though, he was gonna _kill_ that stupid Irken. "And why are you on top of me like that?" He eyed Zim up and down with a raised eyebrow; contemplating the fact that Zim's position could be considered seductive by anyone who hadn't seen what had just happened.

Zim blinked with his two huge rubies. "Um..." he mumbled, unsure how to answer. Dib looking him over threw him off track a bit, but he managed to collect his thoughts. "You were... uh... not breathing and I thought..." he trailed off, unsure how to continue.

Dib looked horrified. He covered his mouth and talked through his hand will wide pupils, white outlining honey irises. "What?!" he whispered excitedly, "You're not saying you actually... you tried to..." He looked a bit sick, but kept an even tone in his voice. "Did you do mouth to mouth on me?" he asked, desperately hoping that Zim was on top of him for another, less disturbing reason.

"What?! No! Zim would never press his amazing mouth to your filthy human face!" he screamed immediately, without putting much thought into his words. He sat up on his knees and got to his feet as quickly as possible. Dib stayed hunched over on his side on the ground, perfectly content to rest a few more moments before murdering the alien. Zim looked over at him again, but another glare quickly sent his glance the other way, staring out over the night sky once again. Dib squinted; he could have sworn Zim's face was tinged with sapphire blush, but that would be stupid. Besides, it's not like he had... done that. Right?

"Zim, did you?" he questioned again, turning to face him slightly, trying to project his voice, even though he was worn out.

"No, Dib-thing," came the reply. Zim didn't bother to turn around as he said it, but he knew Dib would hear. Satisfied, the boy turned back to a comfortable position to try to rest some more. Zim stayed at the edge of the roof, staring out at the navy sky, littered with cosmic fireflies, moving slower than any human eye could see. Zim's advanced eyes, however, were able to watch the stars journey, trekking their slow rotation across the sky.

After a few minutes, Dib finally regained enough strength to continue pressing the alien for answers. "So then you being here for over a year hasn't taught you that Humans need air, or you just felt like smothering me in starch to kill me and betray my trust completely all at the same time?" he asked, bitterness and sarcasm equally obvious.

Zim flinched. "That wasn't my intention," he replied, "I just figured... you filthy humans need nutrients, right? Like in that movie."

Dibs eyes narrowed at 'filthy'. "We're not filthy, the only reason I'm dirty is because you just bathed me in mashed potatoes. And that was just a movie, Zim, but I suppose you've never quite been the type to realize that sort of thing, you moronic Irken scum," he spat. The almost friendly bond they had developed over the past two days was soon forgotten.

"Oh, right, so I can't call you filthy but you can call me scum?" he growled. "Yeah, that seems perfectly fair; you're amazing human logic stuns me again." His sarcasm was almost as good as Dib's own, which was quick adaptation, considering.

"Yeah, you've always fought fair, with you're alien technology that _I could never have_," he shot back, with a hint of jealousy laced into his breath. On some level, he had to admit to himself, he was jealous, jealous of Zim. Simply because Zim was born an alien, with access to all reaches of the galaxy, something he could never have. And he knew that if he ever found out he would flaunt it even more. But it still burned him up every time the Invader took out a sleek communicator or a fancy device- hell, Zim himself was half machine. The injustice of it all just infuriated him more, and he slowly sat up, staring at the aliens back with fire in his eyes.

"Oh, I see," scowled Zim, turning sideways to catch the boy in his peripheral, "So that gives you the right to snoop around my base, steal, and do anything you can to scoop my insides out and inspect my organs? That gives you the right to turn me inside out for your own sick pleasure?!" He glared fiercely, as if daring the boy to challenge him.

"You're a dumb as you look!" he shouted. "You really think I would do that?! That's disgusting! I'm no psychopath; I don't even know how you could think that!"

"If you didn't mean it maybe you shouldn't have _shouted it every day!!_" he screamed, whipping around to face him. There glares matched each other, and both chests swelled with a heated passion.

"Well then, _space-boy_, maybe you shouldn't shout how much you hate me and my race _every day,_" he sneered. He stood and took a few steps towards him, giving him the worst look he could.

"Well maybe I _don't_ hate you or your race, Dib-thing. Maybe I just say that because it's what you expected from the moment you met me." He marched defiantly up to the boy.

"Well maybe if you weren't such an ass I would've realized that by now." He closed the gap between them, so they were staring right into each others eyes, chests and foreheads pressed against each other. They were still exchanging glances of pure loathing.

"Well you're no prize either," Zim retorted.

Dib snapped. He pulled back and lunged, going strait for the throat. The alien was knocked back onto his PAK, which had him screech in pain quickly before letting out the choking noises that accompanied the boy's hands around his neck. He was unable to return the gesture because of his still healing fingers- although he had been able to use them for the most part, this was one thing he couldn't risk doing. What he could do however, was roll over, so that he was on top of the boy, stopping the strain on his PAK.

Dib let out a frustrated growl at being forced to the bottom. He tried to choke harder, but mechanical legs shot out from on top of him and began to pry his hands free, holding him down. He let out a few grunts, but in the end, had to let go. Zim kept him pinned as he gasped for breath, then glared evilly at the boy. In one motion he pulled himself up, unpinning Dib, and kneed him in the still-tender stomach before he had any chance to fight back.

Hot, salty tears welled up in his eyes as Dib gasped, clutching his stomach, and curled into a ball. Zim realized a bit too late that he had gone too far, and dropped to the ground, hand half-outstretched, as if he wanted to help, but knew better. A few meaningless sobs were heard, before Dib, enraged, hollered, "You son of a bitch! I'll kill you!!" He flew up, throwing wild punches at the alien, who blocked them all flawlessly. This only egged him on. A string of incoherent curses came from his mouth as he fought, trying insanely to hit somewhere, anywhere. He finally planted a left hook to Zim's jaw; coincidentally in the same spot the Gaz had punched a day and a half earlier. Zim yelped and flew down, covering his jaw. He landed on his side, immediately curling up. "YOU STUPID JERK!!" shouted Dib, clenching his fists and shouting down at the Irken. On the brink of tears he stood over him shouting, "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME?!"

Zim whimpered, internally horrified at how easily he was showing weakness to his enemy. "I- I'm sorry!" stuttered in a raw, obviously upset voice. He only hoped the boy would still listen to him, and repeated loudly, "I'm sorry!"

Dib froze. His shouts and intense anger suddenly drained, and he took a shaky step back. "Y- y-" he sputtered some unintelligible syllables, hiccupping sobs filling the extra silent space. "Y- y- you're sorry?" he mumbled, finally blinking the wetness in his eyes away, letting it brim over and spill onto his cheeks. Arms and legs turned to lead, and he collapsed onto the concrete roof.

Zim looked up, violet tears brimming in _his_ ruby eyes. "Dib..." he mumbled, trailing off. It was becoming unsettling, how strange the boy was acting lately, and he wished Dib would be stronger. Seeing him so weak threw him off so much. "Dib, please..." he sat up and crawled over to the boy, placing a hand on his trembling shoulder.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Dib sobbed, leaning in to rest his head on the alien's chest. He continued to shake, and Zim wrapped a comforting arm around him, hoping it would calm him down.

The alien looked at him sadly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for this to happen," he said, voice breaking. He tried patting his shoulder as the boy continued to sob, leaning like a dead weight against him. After a pause he continued, trying to sound encouraging, "How about we get you cleaned up, huh?" He was referring to the potato stains now on both their clothes, although he really didn't care. Dib just nodded, wanting the feeling of everything coming undone to go away. 


	13. Chapter 13

Dib gave a shuddering sigh against the Irkens chest, having shuffled inside (with help) and now trembling, trying to stay standing. He was completely drained, and the only reason he was still standing was Zim's arms supporting him, wrapped around his waist. With one arm draped over Zim's shoulders he was leaning heavily on him as they walked through the bathroom door. "Sit down, or get in the tub or something," instructed Zim, releasing his grip on the boy. Dib managed to clamor into the tub without falling, and lay down flat in it, though still completely dressed. "Uh... let me..." Zim pulled Dib's navy shirt off his tired body, without any struggle or argument. Sapphire blush crept onto the aliens face at seeing the bare chest, but he soon swallowed his embarrassment. "Uh, do you want to take off your pants and I'll leave, or...?" he inquired, unsurely.

"No, you do it," replied the wiped out boy. He could wear his boxers in the tub, and he didn't mind being pantless- Zim had seen him without pants before, and he was just too wiped out to care.

"Umm... but, doesn't your race have some... issues with that?" he asked. Making the boy mad again was not at the top of his to-do list. He just wanted a little peace.

Dib sighed and nodded, just barely enough to see, and told him, "Look, I'm just too exhausted to care right now. Just... do it." He was getting more tired by the second. Looking up at the alien, he noticed his discomfort, but he just closed his eyes and thought to himself that the alien would have to get over it, it was his own fault.

"'Kay..." mumbled Zim. He moved his hands down, past the pale chest, and to the zipper of his jeans. He hesitated for a moment, feeling Dib get more agitated with him by the second, until finally he unbuttoned them and began to pull them down. Dib gave no indication that he even noticed, even after Zim had them around his ankles and pulled them off.

This of course was the perfect time for Gaz to pop into the bathroom to ask what that noise on the roof was. "Hey Dib, wh-" she froze, eyes wide. Dib was lying in tub, eyes shut, looking half-asleep and in nothing but underwear, while Zim was holding his pants. She stared for a few moments, looking thoroughly traumatized, than simply walked out, shutting the door behind her. Zim tried to stammer something, but nothing happened, and he just stood continuing to hold Dib's pants. After a little while he managed to recover and set them down, but then paused, not sure what to do next.

"Turn on the water," explained Dib, as if sensing Zim's trepidation.

"I know what to do, human," he sneered out of habit. Dib's brows seemed to sink at this, leaving him with a really ticked off face. With a gulp the alien turned on the faucets at Dibs feet. Water rushed in, filling the tub, and Zim flinched, fear of water still strong even after all the time he had spent on the planet, and all the paste he coated on his skin. With a sigh, Dib shifted, moving so he was leaning against the back of the tub, feet feeling the fresh, warm water splashing onto them.  
Zim backed away and stared at the scene in front of him. Dib, nearly naked, in a tub, stained with tears and mashed potatoes.

"What are you looking at?" Dib grumbled. Zim blushed and looked away, not saying a word. This whole situation was too embarrassing. And that made him think- how humiliated was Dib at this? He glanced sideways at the boy again. He wore a blank expression, unmoving as the water kept rising. This caused Zim to look closer at him, wondering why he looked so stoic. He almost looked... dead.

"Dib-thing?" he asked softly, afraid of something that he couldn't put his finger on.

"What?" he responded curtly.

Zim sighed and turned away. "Nothing..." he mumbled.

Dibs eyes cracked open, but stayed narrowed. He didn't say anything, but glared towards Zim. "Zim," he said. The alien turned towards him, inwardly flinching at his glare.

"...Yes?" he asked quietly.

Dib glowered at him. "Don't give me that. Talking like your scared or something. Get over it," he growled. Zim's face fell and he scratched his arm nervously. The lack of reply only frustrated Dib more. "Stop it!" he yelled, "Stop acting like you care! It's pissing me off."

"But I d-" Zim almost replied, but then covered his hands with his mouth. 'Oh My Tallest, did I just almost say that? No, I couldn't have, I...'

"Oh shut up," he groaned, rolling his eyes. "Honestly Zim, what do you think you're doing? You act like you care and then pull some shit like that. Now your back to pretending like you care again. What's wrong with you?"

"But Dib, I..." he trailed off, tried to collect his thoughts and continued, "You know me better than that. I'm a horrible liar."

Dib made a frustrated noise and turned his head away. "Well..." Actually, Zim had a point, and Dib knew it. "Well..." Dib searched for something to counter him with. "Well... well then what the hell are you doing?!" he exclaimed.

Zim flinched, taken aback. "I'm serious, Zim! You can't act like we're friends then try to kill me! I'm sorry, but that just doesn't work."

"But Dib!" he tried to defend himself.

"No! Listen to me! You can't fuck with my feelings like that! If you can't figure out what you want then get out of here right now, and don't you talk to me until you've got your priorities strait. If we come out of this as enemies again so be it, but I won't have you changing your mind twice a day." Zim's eyes widened as Dib took a pause to collect himself. "I can't deal with that," he continued with sigh.

Zim stood in shocked silence. When he finally regained his voice he stuttered, "B-but, I was only trying to... help." He was surprised at his own words, but made no attempt to take them back. It was the truth, and he was a horrible liar.

"Why?" asked Dib. He turned his head slowly at looked him in the eyes. "Why?" he repeated. Zim only stared.

"Be- Because," he stuttered, "You... are mine."

Dib gave him an emotionless stare. "I... I suppose it's because," Zim continued shakily, "you're the only one who's ever given me special attention. The Tallest give me attention, but other Invaders get that too. I suppose you're the only one, no matter how hard I try, who pays attention to me. So... you are mine. Or maybe I am yours, I don't know." He slumped down onto the tile floor, out of Dib's sight. "It just seemed like what I should do, like I had a responsibility to you," he went on, sounding more upset with every word. "I don't know, I just don't know..." he said in half-sobs.

"Zim..." the boy sighed. Zim looked up and choked down his crying, horrified at the weakness he was showing his enemy. At least, he though it was his enemy, he wasn't entirely sure anymore. "Zim, listen. What are you going to do?"

"I... I'm not sure," he said shakily.

"Do you want to stay here?" he offered. "Help me a little?" He didn't really need any more help, but seeing how messed up Zim was lately, he figured he could use a little someone to talk to, or at least someone to be with. He also figured maybe he could talk to him a little more if he stayed.

"...Sure," he shrugged, "why not?" He stood up and shuffled over to the bathtub, turning off the faucet at Dib's feet quickly and looking the boy over. He was sitting back, water up to his chest, looking a little more than tired. The warm water was relaxing him somewhat, and he definitely looked better than when he had come in. "Uh..." Zim had no idea what to do, and Dib being nearly naked was... distracting.

"Just, uh... hand me a washcloth," he instructed. Zim moved over to a chest of drawers on the adjacent wall and took out a small white cloth, then went back to Dib and, dipping it in the water, began to wash his face. Dib looked a bit surprised. "Well, I was going to do it myself, but okay," he mumbled, a slight embarrassed blush creeping onto his face.

Zim kept rubbing off the filth on Dibs cheek, careful not to get his hand wet. He didn't say a word, but soon moved to his forehead and matted hair. He moved his hand from the top of the water to the top of his head, back and forth, using the wet washcloth to try and rinse it out. "Here," Dib finally said, before he took a deep breath and dunked his head underwater. He came up with a deep breath and leaned back again, warm water still dripping from his hair. "There you go," he said softly, with the slightest smile.

Zim didn't return it, instead giving his a blank expression. He was too tired and confused to try and think. Instead he continued to rub away the grime on the boys face. Dib allowed himself to relax, even shutting his eyes. Zim continued to stare at him, moving down to his chin and neck. He admired the boy's throat. How easy, while he was here, alone with him, to just wrap his fingers around the boys neck, the poor, defenseless boy, or to take out a laser and hit him right between the eyes, before he even knew what was happening, or...

Zim dropped the cloth, but before Dib could open his eyes and fish it out of the water for him, he felt something cool across his neck. He shuttered and swallowed thickly, looking up an emotionless Zim. One metal leg was extended, tip pressing dangerously against his trachea. "Bastard," he muttered hoarsely.

"I'm sorry, Dib," he said coldly, giving him a vacant stare.

"Why, then? If you don't care then just kill me." He knew he was taking a chance with this, and Zim probably would impale his neck, rip out his spine and leave him to drown in the bathtub. But still, there was still a chance, that somewhere, deep down, some of what the alien had said meant something to him.

Zim froze. He couldn't say anything to that. His leg began to quiver, unsure whether to pull back or to stab as a rebuttal.

"And I thought Irkens had a heart. Hah," he chuckled.

Zim still didn't move or respond, apart from his shaking metal appendage. After what seemed like an eternity to Dib, slowly, very slowly, it pulled away. Dib relaxed again, but adopted a stern face. "Look, Zim, just get out. I don't need this right now."

"Dib..." he whispered.

"Look, make up your mind, okay? I don't want you around me if you're going to be like this. It's pathetic," he grumbled.

Zim's eyes narrowed and he sneered. "Pathetic, huh? You want to talk about pathetic?" he asked cruelly. "Fine, I've can tell you a story about pathetic. A scrawny freak of an Earth-boy got beat up by another Earth-boy, and got his butt saved by his worst enemy. The enemy made sure that nobody touched what was his, and the Earth boy clung to him all day. Then the stuuupid Earth-filth nearly got himself killed and started crying about it to the enemy, expecting sympathy! What an idiot!" he shouted.

"You want to hear about pathetic?!" yelled Dib back, standing and getting out of the tub. "Fine then. Once there was an alien who saved his worst enemy, then got all buddy with him and cried on his shoulder about his leaders. Then the next day he stayed protective of what he claimed was 'his', only because he needed the boy! Then he tried to act like he didn't care at all, and he can't make up his mind! What an idiot!"

Zim marched up to the boy, glaring daggers into his head. "Well at least I don't get ganged up on because I'm a loser!" he shouted, pushing Dib back.

"Well at least I don't have an ego the size of a galaxy!" he countered, shoving back.

"Well at least I don't depend on someone else to save me!" he shot.

"Well at least I know what I want!" he screamed, nearly knocking the Irken over with his push.

"Well what DO you want?!" screeched the alien. He rammed his fists into Dib's chest, who staggered back, but because of the slippery tile floor, slipped back and with a loud 'CLANG,' hit his head on the floor.

Zim snapped out of his angry trance. "Dib?" he asked, not even worrying about the concern showing through in his voice.

The boy moaned and sat up, rubbing the back of his head. He gasped and pulled his palm forward to show a light pinkish stain where blood and water mixed. Feeling the back of his head again he winced. He had split the skin. "Dammit!" he swore angrily, standing up.

"Here, let me-" Zim offered his hand, but was pushed away by the boy.

"No, I think you've done enough," he returned with an evil glare. "Get out of here, Zim."

"But Dib-"

"No! Get out!" he screamed, holding the back of his head. "If we're going to be enemies then fine!" He took a step towards him. "If that's how you want it to be, FINE!" With another step they were face to face. "Now get OUT of my house!!" And with that he drew his still pink hand back and slapped Zim hard across the cheek.

The alien froze, in shock. Nobody had ever just slapped him before. Stabbed at him, shot at him, of course, but it was just such a personal insult that the alien stood stock still, face still to the side from the impact. Dib waited for him to move, to react, staring furiously at him. Zim slowly turned, narrowing his eyes, and growled low, "You will not tell me what to DO!" On the last word he shouted, swiping at the boys head. Dib jumped back, sliding on the wet tile. Zim made a move to charge at him, but Dib, looking around, spotting something that would save his hide.

Zim stopped in his tracks. "You wouldn't dare," he said, staring up at the boy, ready to leap at him.

"Try me," threatened Dib, holding up the showerhead with one hand on the faucet, pointing it at Zim with a glare. Zim stood still, and they stared each other down, daring the other to try something. They might have stayed there all night had Zim not finally gotten sick of it.

"Fine," he sighed, standing at full height. Giving Dib a cold stare he slowly backed towards the door, keeping his eyes on the nearly naked, dripping wet boy with a shower-sprayer in his hand. They had gotten in too deep, both of them, and both knew it.

"Get out," growled Dib again. Zim continued to back away, never taking his glare from the boy. Once he was outside the bathroom door Dib placed the showerhead on the ground and walked up to the door, giving Zim one finally icy stare before he slammed the door in the aliens face.

He stood there for a moment, listening for the footsteps, but they never came. After about half a minute he felt something trickle down his neck. He moved his hand behind his head to wipe it away, and it came back with a bright red smear. With a sigh, Dib took his quivering hand over to the sink and washed it off, getting the washcloth to try and clean off the small wound on his head.

"...Dammit," he grumbled. He heard a thump on the other side of the door, indicating that Zim had slumped to the floor. With a sad look to the door and back to his hands on the faucet, and another glance at where Zim was on the other side of the wall, he sighed and shuffled over to it. Mouth open, he waited for something to come out, but when only air escaped his mouth, he folded in on himself and sat on his knees on the floor, still clutching the cloth to his hair. He leaned his back against the door, and heard the alien breathing shakily on the other side, no doubt in his mind the he alien heard him too.

'_If only I could get to the other side..._' they thought in unison.

Then he heard Zim getting to his feet, sniffling, and stepping away from the door. '_...so that's it then._' he thought to himself, as he listened to Zim walk away. "I hope you're happy," he mumbled, to the empty air.

On the other side, Zim heard the boy's wistful sighs. For a moment he stopped, and a part of him yearned to go back, but the other part of him stopped him before he began. He hesitated for a slow moment, then continued shuffling through the hallway. Dib held the stained cloth to his head as he listened, and once Zim's footsteps were out of hearing distance, he let out a melancholy sigh.

'_Too late to look back now,_'

----------------------------------------------------------

Red sighed, looking towards Purple. "This is our last chance, isn't it?" asked Purple, looking towards his crimson co-leader.

"Yeah," he answered, with uncharacteristic tiredness in his voice.

"What do we do if this doesn't work?" he inquired, for about the 17th time that hour.

"Come on, how could it not?" he said, regaining some of his cocky spirit.

"Well, it is you-know-who. Nothing ever goes right with him," he countered.

"Oh stop it, Purple, since when are you a pessimist?" he teased.

"I suppose you're right," he mused. "So who should we call first?"

Red pondered for a minute. "Ya know... I think we should call Zim first," he decided.

Purpled gave him an alarmed look. "What? Are you out of your mind?" he asked. "You feeling okay?" He was dead serious. He lifted a two fingered hand up to feel Red's PAK. "You're not overheating or anything?"

"Pur-pllle," he whined. "Trust me." He only whined in Purples presence, it was just something that was the norm between the two.

"I say it's a bad idea," he pouted, crossing his arms.

"Heeey, come on," Red tried to convince him. "What could go wrong?"

"Everything," he said stubbornly.

"Well if we don't try what are we going to have to deal with?"

Purple hesitated, trying to think of a response. "...I guess," he mumbled.

"So let's call him together, hm?" encouraged Red, giving a smooth smile and wrapping one arm around him.

"Alright," said Purple, blue tinting his face. He entwined antenna with his co-leader, quickly pulling away so none of the technicians would notice.

Red gave a chuckle. "Alright!" he said, giving Purple's shoulders a squeeze, "Call him up. We'll see if this can be done or not."

"Zim will come," whispered Purple, "he's so loyal it's crazy."

"Only when it suits him," murmured Red back.

"But you don't think...?" Purple gave him a nervous look.

"No, he'll come. He has to," came the firm response. Up on the monitor, the words 'Calling... please wait...' were displayed. Now all he had to do was pick up. After all that planning on a different than normal frequency, and Zim out of the loop, he was probably dieing for a call. "Here we go," Red smiled. 


	14. Chapter 14

When Dib finally shuffled out of the bathroom, self-bandaged and no longer bleeding from any open wounds, he simply flopped onto his bed and passed out then and there. He didn't even bother to change his still slightly damp boxers, nor did he notice the pair of glaring amber eyes staring at him from the doorframe as he slept. 

Dib felt himself walking, walking along what he didn't know, but he knew he had to get there. Exhaustion was tearing at every muscle, filling his lungs with iron, but something made him press on, urgency screaming from every side of the blackness surrounding him. It seemed like he was walking in a golden forest- it must've been night, but there were no stars in the sky, no moon, not one light. Yet somehow he could see, and kept walking along the small dirt path, trees entwined on either side of him. He didn't know how long he had been walking, but it must've been eternity. There was nothing on either side of him but the trees, nothing that seemed important, oh but there was! Dib could feel it run through his bones, with each step he got a tiny bit closer to his goal. All around him the trees were rustling without a breeze, almost sounding like laughing... but he would show them. He knew he was moving towards something important, even though the path up ahead was all he could see, and it looked as though it stretched on for miles.

Then suddenly, he came upon a figure, laying right in the middle of the road. Suddenly whatever he had been walking towards hadn't seemed so important. "Who are you?" he asked, staring over the figure, looking down curiously. A sense of vague recollection flickered within him, but he ignored it.

The small person cracked open an eye, which shone like a ruby, glistening against the dull path and the figure's verdant skin. "I don't know," he replied. "Maybe you could help me find out?" The strange boy sat up and pulled himself to his feet, buckles and chains covering him, but not seeming to slow him down. Dib then realized that he had a similar set wrapped around him. Maybe that was why he was so tired from walking?

"Okay," he said, looking at the boy, "Come with me." He smiled, and the green boy smiled back at him. Even though he was glad to have a companion, the trees seemed to close in as they stood side by side. Dib was the first to take a step, but as soon as his boots hit the gravel road the trees twisted, with horrible groans and creaks. The two looked around, bewildered and terrified, before sprinting away together, fingers intertwined.

In a twisted dance they ran, hardly noticing their hands together, dodging the trees and roughly pushing and pulling each other along. Dib began to get angry at how cruel the other seemed to be, yanking him around like a ragdoll. In retaliation he yanked him away from his own demise at the hands of the trees, not stopping their sprint to freedom for anything. It felt like they were fighting each other, but at the same time, helping each other. Dib could hardly help but notice how limber the other seemed to be with his movements, and cursed himself. Now why couldn't he be like that? Maybe it was because the other had been resting in the road. That must be it.

Suddenly the ground fell out from under him, and Dib cried out, trying to latch on to his partner. A branch had twisted it's way around his ankle and snagged his pants, jerking him to a halt. At first, this nearly knocked the other down with him, but as he looked up from the dirt in face to see him with both hands around his wrist, pulling with all his might. The boy could just leave him, he knew he could have. So why was he saving him? Perhaps the strange green boy still needed to find out who he was. Did he think he needed Dib for that? Either way, Dib took firm hold of the boy and tried to push against the vines ensnaring him. All around them more were creeping up, and his ruby-eyed companion seemed to be in a panic, eyes darting about as if looking for an exit route. His grip loosened ever so slightly.

"Please!" Dib cried, as the branch snaked it's way up his leg. The other looked at him quickly, flashing him a glance that looked sorrowful... apologetic.

"I need you!" he cried again, gripping hopelessly. He knew he wouldn't make it without the other, but we wouldn't really just leave him for dead, would he? Dib wasn't sure what he would do if he were no the other end. Another branch curled around his waist, squeezing him tightly, while another made it's way to his neck. He made a choked noise, trying to grip even harder, eyes pleading to the reluctant figure to save him.

Then, just like that, the green one bent down, placing a tiny kiss on his cheek. "Forgive me," he whispered softly, sadly. With that he let go, and Dib, shocked, had let go too.

Plummeting into darkness, branches all around him, strangling him, constricting him, killing him slowly, the last thing he saw was a shining crimson eye turn, blink away a tear, and his companion running, much faster than he ever could have. Breath and consiouness leaving him, he tried to scream, but the only thing that came was a choked whisper, "But I loved you..." The branches all squeezed, with a horrible creaking sound crushing him from all sides, cracking bones, blood sprinkling from his mouth where ribs punctured lungs, and his eyes rolled into the back of his head, until all he could see was death, dark and damp.

Dib woke up, clutching his sheets, screaming in a cold sweat. Sitting up, eyes wide he gasped for breath, shocked and relieved that he could breathe without being constricted. As silly as it would later seem he looked down, checking to make sure that his ribs were not cracked, and that he wasn't covered in blood or vines. With a shaky sigh he moved his knees up to his chin and buried his face there. Zim had been in his dream. As often as he dreamed about Zim, this vision was unique. Zim was not trying to take over the world, nor was he making a random attempt on anyone's life. Zim had merely been a nameless companion. No, not nameless, he had a name, he just wasn't sure what it was. Neither of them knew. Dib had felt that he knew him somehow but nothing specific had come to mind. Dib wondered if it was because Zim had always seemed to be there? He couldn't really remember him not being there. But why had the trees attacked when they were together? And what had happened to make Zim rest there like that? It didn't seem fitting of Zim to just sit and wait. Unanswered questions filled his mind as he cradled his forehead on his legs, curled in an upright ball. Muffled sobs escaped him as he tried to shake off the feeling of abandonment. It hurt. It almost hurt more than the crushing of the vines. Or maybe the two pains were one and the same, Dib didn't know.

A quick glance at the clock flashing 5:30 told him it was still a little too early to get up. However a cold female voice told him otherwise. "What's the matter with you, Dib? Nightmare?"

Dib nearly jumped out of his skin. "G- Gaz!" he stuttered, whipping his head towards the doorway. He pulled his blanket over his knees and clutched it to his chest, as a way to comfort himself.

Her expression softened, just a fraction, and she walked inside. "I was wondering when you'd wake up. It sounded like you were dieing in here," she said casually. Sitting herself on the bed next to Dib, albeit reluctantly, she turned and looked at him. "So... uh... what was it?" Caring wasn't exactly Gaz's things, but she had overheard nearly everything that had happened last night, and although she would never admit it, she did care somewhat for her brother. Making trouble for him was just something she did, beating him up was only something she did when he made her mad, but underneath it all she did care for him. When he started talking to himself she threatened to tear his throat out because she knew he got nothing but crap for his strange habits. All she wanted was for him to be a normal person, maybe get a few friends, and he and Zim had seemed pretty friendly up until last night. Besides, if he got a friend he would leave her alone; it was a win-win situation.

"Hm?" Dib cocked an eyebrow, confused. Since when did Gaz care about his problems? Oh well, he certainly wasn't going to complain. With a jerky shrug he said, "Just a bad dream, that's all," feigning nonchalance. Gaz was not so easily fooled.

"Tell me now, or so help me I will..." she growled. Now that was more like it. Anger Gaz could do any day.

"Alright, Alright!" exclaimed the boy, putting his hands up defensively. Inside he smiled. '_Good old Gaz_.' He started explaining the dream in great detail, leaving out only the part where he whispered something with the word 'love' in it. That scared him almost as much as the dream. "And then the vines swallowed me up, wrapped all around me, and they were crushing me, like..." he trailed off, unable to describe it. His face fell, and he said meekly, "...that's pretty much it."

Pondering for a minute, Gaz's eyes appeared to be closed even more than they usually were. Nervously she fiddled with her skull charm, unsettled with the lack of Gameslave to occupy herself with. "Well..." she began unsurely. She took another moment to get her thoughts in order. "I guess you should try talking to him."

Dib tried to play dumb. "Huh? Talk to who?" asked the boy innocently.

"You know who I mean," his sister glared, crossing her arms. Stretching his legs, Dib leaned back and supported himself on his hands. With a sigh he looked down into his lap again.

"I tried that. You must have heard. He pulled out his spider leg and help it to my neck." Now utterly depressed, the boy flopped back and stared at the ceiling, folding his hands on his chest.

Gaz paused for a moment, then turned to him again. "But did he mean it?"

"Huh?" Genuinely confused he lifted his head to give her a dumbfounded look.

"Did he mean it? Would he really have been able to hurt you?" She scoffed. Dib could be so thick sometimes. That's why she had to beat things into him sometimes. It really wasn't _her_ fault.

Dib grimaced for a moment, thinking on it, before turning his head towards the wall. Mumbling, he told her, "He looked like he would have slit my throat."

"But would he actually have?" she inquired. "I think he's proven that he doesn't really want to hurt you."

Without an answer, Dib merely sighed. Exasperated, Gaz rolled her eyes at her emo-kid brother and stood up. "Well, whatever, but if you want to come downstairs there's pancakes. They just need a little reheating; I got hungry waiting for you to wake up."

Dib perked up. Going to sleep did not sound like fun, and if he got a free breakfast, it made it even better. Besides that, he reasoned he wouldn't get much sleep anyway. The sun was already peaking above the horizon, tinting the dawn sky with a splash of pastel pink and yellow, fading to a melancholy grey that mixed into the nights deep blue. The trees had began to outline themselves with gold, contrasting the shadows of night still lingering on their leaves. Fall colors had seeped in to the visible trees, although green still showed prominently on many of them. Dib smiled. He had always loved having the east room.

Then something Gaz had said prodded his mind into thinking. "Hold on, you waited for me to wake up? How long?" he asked, suddenly curious.

"All night," she replied without missing a beat. She had moved to the door while Dib was spacing out at the sunrise.

Dibs eyes widened. "But... what about sleep?" he asked, quickly becoming concerned for his baby sisters health, even though he knew she hated when he doted on her. She was more than capable of taking care of herself, he knew, but it was an impulse he couldn't help. To him, she would always be his venerable little sister Gaz.

Scoffing, she responded, "Pfft, sleep is for the weak."

Dib blinked. That was his little Gaz, alright. With a light smile he stood up, wrapping the blanket around his shoulders and walking to the door to get some pancakes. As he passed Gaz he gave her a small hug then continued on. She stiffened up at the affection, glaring at the back of her brothers head as he shuffled away without a word. She huffed and crossed her arms. Whatever, she would let him get away with it for now. A rare smile crept across her face, without her knowing, and she hugged her arms to her chest, mimicking Dibs actions. Yeah, she'd let him get away with it.

* * *

_A/N: AND HOLY SHIT IT ONLY TOOK A MONTH AND A HALF.  
-is a useless waif-  
No more excuses for me. Seriously guys, pound my head into the pavement if you have to. This cannot be allowed to continue._


	15. Chapter 15

_A/N: BEFORE YOU ALL SCREAM "OOC ALERT" IN YOUR REVIEWS!_

_I know Zim seems out of character in this chapter, but **there is a reason** for it. You just don't get to know what it is right now. Haw haw. Also: I Heart Cliffhangers._

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Zim weakly lifted his head. The alarm for school was going off. He quickly buried it in his knees again, another round of dry sobs wracking his exhausted frame. As soon as his Tallests had ended the call he had broken down, something no proper Invader would ever allow themselves to do. It was too little time, to much to take in. Keening again he stretched his legs out in front of him and called for Gir. Cheerfully skipping in with his usual high pitched greeting, the android immediately noticed something wrong with his master. "Master, you sad? What's wrong?" he said, childlike concern strong through his squeaking voice. 

Zim swallowed, trying to save face, and mumbled a pathetic, "Nothing..." Seeing his master's distress, Gir cooed and walked up to him, stubby arms attempting to encircle him as he gave an affectionate hug. Touched by the robots concern, Zim hugged him back tightly, Gir making another happy noise.

"Come on, Master!" he chirped, "I bet some waffles will cheer you up!" Taking the Irkens hand he pulled towards the kitchen, not noticing when his jogging didn't move Zim at all. With a light, sad smile, Zim stood up and walked towards the elevator. He knew one thing: he had to see Dib. Nothing mattered more to him now than seeing that boy.

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Dib was poking at his soggy re-heated pancakes with a spork, looking totally uninterested and completely zoned out. "Hello? Earth to Dib?" said, Gaz, waving her hand in front of his face, trying to get his attention again.

"I'm on Earth," he answered distractedly, putting his spork down for a moment to lazily swat her hand away.

She pulled her hand away and looked offended at being brushed off. "Oh, no you're not. I know exactly where your mind is. On that stupid alien." Looking away was the only response Dib could muster. With a huff the little Goth girl placed her hands on her hips and stared him down. "Denial won't get you anywhere," she accused.

"I don't want to talk about it," he quietly refused. She glared at him, but turned and walked out of the room instead of pursuing it. A soft 'thunk' rested Dib's head on the table, glasses uncomfortably pressing into his skin. Thinking aloud he mumbled, "I really need a new pair of glasses; Dad got these for me like, how many years ago? Ugh." Lifting his head again he began to sullenly cut pieces of pancake and put them in his mouth. They weren't half bad, even though they were only lukewarm.

Suddenly his vision went black and he felt a cloth cover his head. Slightly panicked, he tugged it off, only to realize it was nothing more than his trench coat. "There," Gaz growled from across the room, "maybe with that back you'll start thinking strait again."

He looked from her to the overcoat with a tinge of guilt. She had obviously washed and dried it for him; she was obviously trying to be nice to him and make a connection, and he was pushing her advice back. Standing up he put it around his shoulder and pulled his arms through the sleeves, then looked down to admire it. It was still the same, familiar trench he had worn since he was... what, 8? It had been much too big for him back then but as time passed he had grown into it. Now it was getting too small for him. "You didn't have to," he thanked her, looking up and hoping to catch a rare glimpse of her amber eyes.

"Well I did," she scoffed, walking away again. With a tiny sigh his face fell and he wrapped the tight-fitting coat around himself. '_Better keep getting ready_,' he told himself, '_school starts soon._' The thought of school had his stomach doing uneasy summersaults, and to distract himself he looked out at the golden gray of the early morning. The sun was peaking up against the horizon, casting odd shadows in the contours of the forest on the edge of town. He sighed to himself, noting the falling leaves blowing in the wind, and forced himself to keep getting ready.

Once he finally got out the door his nerves were performing a three ring circus. Worrying about the kids at school and Zim and himself wasn't exactly the most calming thing to do as he walked with his little sister to his doom. A part of him wondered if Zim would even show up today, or if he would stay home. If Zim didn't show up Dib would have to go looking for him... to make sure he wasn't planning something. Of course, that was it. He had a duty. That was why he had to see Zim, not because he wanted the Irken to apologize and for them to call a truce and... nope, none of that. It was all business.

He suddenly realized how sad he was that he was still in the same old attire. The trademark outfit was years old by now, and he was craving a change, in more ways than one. It was starting to grow ill-fitting, only coming 3/4 of the way up and exposing pale, bare wrists. It still fit him around the torso, though, although it was starting to get a bit short. The few inches he had managed to add were mostly from his slender legs. He sighed- maybe he'd go clothes shopping the next time he was out and about. Not like that ever happened.

The walk to school was mostly brooding, with arms crossed tightly against his chest. He stuck as close to Gaz as she would allow, but whenever they passed someone she would make it obvious that he was with her before anyone even thought of trying to harm him. They arrived at Skool a bit early, and Dib decided to head to class. They hopefully wouldn't kill him in full view of a teacher. Gaz let him walk down the hall on his own for the last few hundred feet, confident he could run for cover if he ran into trouble. However the second she turned to corner, the crowd pounced.

"Where's your boyfriend?"

"Not here to save you now!"

"Did you really make out under the bleachers?"

"You'd better hope Smacky doesn't sue!"

"Zim is gonna be so dead- Torque didn't get a chance to tell his story 'til this morning."

"I heard it was a broken rib."

"Did you pay him to be your bodyguard?"

"Are you two going steady yet?"

Dib was flooded with questions, some sounding hostile, some merely curious. He backed up, wide-eyed, until he hit a row of lockers behind him. "Why does everyone assume that I'm gay?!" exclaimed Dib.

"Oh come on, you totally have the hots for him," came one reply.

"The hand-holding."

"Obsession," sing-songed one.

"Is Smacky really that hurt?" he inquired, ignoring the questioning of his sexual preferences for the moment.

"Yeah, and you and your boyfriend are gonna pay!"

"Oh, he's just exaggerating."

"Did you see Zim? What did he even do?! It was like a blur!"

"You've got some nerve coming back here."

One of the crowd stepped forward and lifted Dib up by the collar of his shirt. The boy gasped and attempted in vain to stop the choking sensation it was giving him. A flash of recognition flew across his face- it was one of Torque's cronies who had seen there. "And trust me," he continued, "this time you've got no way-"

"Were you saying something?" A voice behind them once again startled the crowd, but Dib was probably the most shaken by that voice, so filled with hatred and rage. He had figured that the alien would abandon him after their fight. The brief flittering scrap of friendship between them had barely taken off before it was shot down. Now Dib figured Zim would join them, or at least direct that hatred towards him. However a bit of hope still lingered in him and he gave a pleading look to Zim. Zim, to his surprised, returned with a soft frown, that almost looked... apologetic? No, Dib didn't dare hope that.

"Yes, I-" The boy had turned while speaking in his haughty manner, expecting someone unimportant, and instead nearly wet himself when he saw the Irken staring him down. Dib landed hard on his bottom as the boy dropped him and tried to blend back into the crowd. A path cleared between the two as Zim's expression went from a hard glare to a sullen stare. Dib wasted no time scrambling to his feet, standing at odds with the Irken with the same dull mask on his face.

"Zim," he managed to say, without breaking his resolve. To his horror and amazement, Zim's bottom lip began to quiver and a pained expression came to his face. His enemy looked like he was about ready to cry. Averting their eyes at the same time, both wrung their hands. Dib found it increasingly frustrating not knowing what to say, and the charged silence soon made the crowd a bit nervous. You could hear clothes rumple as people shifted around, waiting for one of them to make a move.

"Dib," he replied, voice sounding worn and broken. Dib blinked, something was definitely off with Zim. Maybe he had finally broken through his shell; maybe Zim was starting to... no, impossible. But then why did he seem so upset, why were his false blue-gray eyes tearing up?

"Zim, I..." the words he wanted to say wouldn't come, words like, 'Come here. What's wrong? There there. Don't worry. It's okay.' The fact that Zim actually had feelings was now undeniable, as much as his original image of the emotionless killing machine he had thought Zim to be wanted to linger in his mind. He struggled to find the right words, and eventually settled on just one, laced with meaning. "Zim," he smiled lightly, extending his arms.

Zim bit his lips, visibly shaking. He hated how weak he felt, he hated it with all his being and yet it was such a relief when he finally gave in, running into the humans arms, embracing him tightly and bursting into tears. All the years of emotions that he tried to deny, all the raw, bottled feeling he had kept a secret finally boiled over and he allowed himself to stay, bawling on Dib's shoulder. He didn't even care who saw him, because Dib was the only one who had ever really seen him.

Dib was almost taken aback by the sobbing figure quivering like a leaf pressed against his chest. After a moment, though, he wrapped his arms around Zim in return, smiling sympathetically as he felt the wetness pooling on his shoulder. "Shh... it's okay. That's right, let it out," he cooed softly into Zim's wig. The Irken cried harder at this, continuing even as Dib scooped him up under his knees and carried him out, rocking his gently from side to side. Blame couldn't be put on Zim; the Irken must have been terribly confused being flooded with all of his emotions, and for the first time expressing them. Although it hadn't seemed like it at the time, their little chat on the roof had cemented a strong bond between the two. Neither had ever had anyone to talk to in their entire lives, so finally finding someone who would listen and understand... it was a relief.

No one else mattered as the two of them walked out of the school and out onto the street, Zim still sobbing in the boys arms. "Sh... I know a place where we can go," Dib whispered to him softly. A limp nod was all he got in response. Dib couldn't help think it odd that Zim was so upset- he had been more expecting of being shunned or hoping for a quiet, grudging acceptance. A full out breakdown was not what the boy had planned for. Nevertheless, it looked as though Zim had made his choice. Dib, ironically, looked to the sky, thinking that perhaps things would finally get better.

Little did he know what he would be thinking on that same spot later that same night.


	16. Chapter 16

Once Zim had finally calmed, only keening mildly on the park bench where Dib had set him, the human had gone off to buy him a coffee. He could tell something was definately bothering the Irken, but he just assumed it was his new flood of feelings. The fact that Zim hadn't said a word had set him on edge, though. Zim had only responded to him with a quick nod or a hand gesture. The contsant screams had become a sort of accompaniment to the Irkens prescense. As obnoxious as it seemed, it was sorely missed, like part of Zim was missing. Quickly paying for the iced mocha, Dib walked back to the bench to see Zim with his knees drawn up to his chin, staring up up into the sky. He handed Zim the drink, who took it deflt, giving him a quick nod of appreciation. Concern was etched onto Dib's features as he sat beside him. 

"Zim..." he began, "listen, you're probably confused and stuff but... you seem really really upset. Is something wrong?" Turning to face him he was shocked by Zims expression; he almost looked pained. He sighed softly and rested his head on the boy's shoulder, letting his eyes fall shut. "Zim, something's wrong," he said, this time being forceful. The only response he got was Zim leaning on him more, making no noise.

"Zim, tell me what's going on," he ordered, taking the alien's chin into his hand lifting it up so that Zim was forced to look into his eyes. The alien simply stared at him in a half-lidden gaze before letting his contacts hide behind his green eyelids. His breathing was quiet and reserved, mouth barely open to let the air in. It was almost a comatose state, and Dib was starting to get scared now. "Zim, please, say something!" he begged.

"I don't want to talk about it..." came the worn voice. Zim's lids were still shut, as though he didn't want to see.

Dib frowned. It wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear, but it was better than nothing. "Later then?" he asked. Zim hesitated, then nodded. "So what do you want to do now?" he inquired. He let go of his grip on the alien's chin, and Zim once again thunked against his shoulder. Dib sat in silence for a bit, accepting that as the answer. If Zim needed support then that was what he would give. He felt the Irken take a sip of his mocha and quietly sit up.

"Lets... do something fun," he answered. Dib gave him a concerned and slightly confused look. "I want to make new memories," he sighed. "Something to erase our old ones. I don't want to remember the fights we had..." '...when I'm gone.' he added in his mind. "I only want to remember happy things. This planet has so many happy things."

Dib gave him another concerned look, slightly shocked at the request. "Um... okay. Like what?" he asked, wishing more and more that he knew what was on the Irken's mind. Zim sat up a little straiter at this.

"Well," Zim smirked slightly, his mood lightening, "I think we should go shopping..." He playfully flicked the end of Dib's nose. "Because you need new glasses. I see how ill-fitting the ones you currently have are."

Dib went cross eyed trying to follow Zim's finger as it flicked him. "Oh? You really think that's a good idea?" he asked, looking up at the Irken.

"Yes, yes I do," he answered, taking another sip of his mocha and clicking his tounge in approval as the taste.

"Well alright then. Let's go. Right now." Dib stood bravely, looking eagerly to Zim.

"If you really wanna ride Gir that bad," he smirked. Dib immediately sat, looking slightly scared. "But you know there's the bus... ah, no. Not the bus. The bus is hideously scary. With a clown." Zim hissed, narrowing his eyes at an invisible enamy.

"What about a taxi?" Dib suggested.

"No," Zim immediately shot the idea down, "too suspicious. Truency is a crime, if I'm not mistaken." Dib looked down at his shoes, defeated. Zim took another sip of mocha, slurping loudly.

"But you know," he said suddenly, "I have to get you back for carrying me out of there." A devious grin was sent Dib's way, causing him to lean back just a little bit.

"W- what do you mean?" he asked, half fascinated, half terrified.

"I have to carry you somewhere now," he smirked. Eyes widening, Dib scooted back just a bit farther.

"Um, no, thats... ZIM PUT ME DOWN!" he screeched, being carried away on Zims shoulder once again. As he tried to struggle, Zim tighetened his grip on the boy's waist, causing his to squeal uncomfortably. "Zim... really..." he mumbled, earning himself another harsh squeeze to the middle. "...fine," he squeaked out, giving up for fear of having the alien crush any vital organs. The grip immediately slackened so that Dib could breath semi-normally, but he was still unhappy at having Zim's arm around his middle and being forced to be carried down the street for goodness knows how long. He crossed his arms and frowned behind Zims back, then reached for something to steady himself on when he began bouncing to Zim's step as he walked. His hand clutched Zim's wig and the alien stoped, intaking a sharp breath.

"Dib... hand... ooh..." he said, clenching his eyes shut and slowly tensing and releasing a fist with his free hand. The boy blinked. The last sound Zim had made was almost a moan. Gingerly moving his hand away, Zim released his breath in a slow hiss and shivered. "Don't. Touch. That's an Irkens primary sensory organ, it's very... receptive," he ordered.

"Oh, sorry," Dib said, fascination tickling at the front of his mind. He was tempted to disobey the order to see if it gained him the same reastion, but he knew better than to do that. So for the rest of the walk he simply rested on the Irkens shoulder, at some point deciding to allow his neck to relax and staring at the ground. "You know..." he mumbled, "we shouldn't let this turn into a habit..."

"Oh, I think you like it." The smirk was visible in his voice as he moved his hand too low for Dib's comfort once again and gave him a light pat on the bottom.

Dib's jaw nearly dragged on the ground. He stayed confounded for a bit before finally coming up with a counter attack. "Oh, I think you're having much more fun than I am," he responded, squirming slightly. "Feeling me up..." he muttered under his breath.

Zim only gave a devious grin that the boy couldn't see and then slyly gave him a squeeze, enticing a startled squeak from his lips. Dib stayed quiet for the entire rest of the trip, the pink tint in his face not fully leaving until his feet were safely on the ground again and he was stading in front of the mall, Zim momentarily distracted by a random pot of flowers.

"Shall we, then?" Dib asked, turning to the green boy beside him. Bending over the flower pot and not hearing him, Zim moved both hands up in front of his to tinker with something. Dib walked up behind him casually, placing his hands on ZIm's hips. "Hey, c'mon," he prompted, "are you going or not?"

Zim stood up strait abruptly. Two small bumps, almost unnoticable, shifting under Zim's wig told Dib that he was startled. The alien didn't say anything, but instead stood there stiffly in front of him, in a state of mild shock. "Zim, are we going inside or not?" he asked again, smiling gently, a bit amused by the Irken's jumpyness.

Zim suddenly turned around and stared at the boy from close range. Almost jumping back from the sudden movement, Dib pulled his hands back to his sides. "W- what is it?" he asked. Zim just gazed at him with wide eyes. For the longest time, Dib stood there, unable to move, captivated by the fake irises in the aliens skull. Then Zim surprised him by lifting a closed hand.

"Here," he said, opening it. A flower laid inside, delecately left in tact. He took it between two fingers and weaved it into the boy's hair gently, no readable expression on his face.

Dib knew he was blushing. "Um, thanks..." he blinked, unsure of what to do. "But um... I think..." he took the alien's hand, which was still fiddling with his hair, and with the other hand plucked the flower from it's perch. "I think it'd look better on you..." he whispered, placing it in Zim's wig, tying the stem carefully in to the fake, wiry hair. As sweet a gesture as it was, he really didn't want a flower in his hair all day, and he wasn't lieing, it looked natural on the alien.

It was Zim's turn to blush. A light cerulean settled onto his cheeks. "Thanks," he smiled lightly, quietly. He lifted a gloved claw to gently pet the boys hand. Dib coughed, smiling and looking away.

"So then," he hesitated, unsure of whether or not he should pull away from Zim's gentle affections. "Um, should we go in? Do you even... have money?" He took the Irkens hand and lowered it, dropping it at his side. A smirk was his answer.

"Of course, Dib-thing. You give me no credit. For I have found..." he reached dramamtically to his back pocket, giving him a large smile all the while, "...A MAGIC MONEY CARD!" He pulled out a rectangular grey piece of plastic, that glinted slightly in the morning rays, and held it up with great flair, a triumphant victory grin on his face.

"A... credit card?" asked Dib. Zim gave him a flat look for killing the dramatic reveal.

"Yes. A "credit card", if you must." He waved his free hand dismissively.

"You realize you have to pay for that eventually?" he asked.

"Oh?" Zim asked in mild surprise. Studying it for a bit, he shrugged his shoulders apathetically. "It's not 'eventually' yet," he answered.

"Yeah, but things could change sooner than you think," Dib pointed out. There was a pause, and Zim blinked, looking almost taken aback.

Zim suddenly frowned and slumped, feeling all the joy drain out of him. He didn't even bother with a retort. Brushing beside Dib he walked into the large automatic doors, listening to them open with a metalic wooshing. Motioning with a half-hearted wave for Dib to follow, he walked in, and Dib, utterly bewildered by the sudden change in additude, complied.

_'There's definately something up with him..._' he thought to himself, biting the inside of his cheek and walking in close behind him. He tapped the alien on the shoulder, only to find that when he turned around he was rubbing his eyes, despite the lack of obvious tears. "I'm sorry," Dib heard himself say, wrapping his arms around the alien in a gesture of comfort. "Whatever I said I take it back."

Zim nodded, smiled, returned the hug gratefully, and walked on.


End file.
